Rise of the Fenix
by St34lth N1nj4
Summary: Follow the adventures of Fenix Fall in his time at Beacon Academy. His team (Team FABL pronounced Fable) often works with teams RWBY and JNPR but his relationships on the opposing side of the struggle for Remnant complicate things. Which side will he choose to fight for when the attack on Beacon comes? This is my first fanfic so feedback is much appreciated!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Rough Start

"I'm not quite sure what the typical first memory of a young old boy should be. Pleasant ones I would like to think. Something along the lines of a birthday party, playing with friends, or sharing a special moment with the parents or a sibling." A pair of eyes shot to the hard tile of the floor hoping to find some comfort in it for what was coming next.

Sitting at the table in the middle of a small room that could only be described with eerie similarities to an interrogation room for criminals, sat a boy. The light shone on him and him alone as the others in the room preferred for the focus to be on teenager. He attempted to sit up straight to maintain his composure but the serious atmosphere of the room appeared to take its toll on him. He hunched back over and hung his head. Wishing to not admit he was cracking under a little pressure but it showed enough for anyone observing to know that he did not enjoy how things were going at the moment. After a moment, fiery eyes rose to meet the small committee wishing to question the boy.

In most cases fiery would be meant figuratively as if the boy showed determination and strength just through the look in his eyes. In the case of this specific teenage boy, it was most literal. His irises gave off the appearance of a dancing flame within a fireplace on a quiet evening. They had that color combination of red, orange, and yellow while they all continuously seemed to be interchanging and moving about. As they would flicker quite frequently it made his eyes seem like they had a life of their own. Although soothing to look at in this instance it made the other parties in the room believe that if they were to anger the boy the look of damnation from his eyes would be enough to incinerate them on the spot. Once the party on the opposite side of the table from the boy finished inspecting his eyes it was evident that he adopted this obsession with flames into many aspects of his life.

The boy had hair that was ear length but stylishly spiked to stand up while the color scheme made it look like it was on fire. The seamless color flow began with the roots as their original brown color that quickly turned to bright red and then ended with the tips having a bright orange and yellow mixture. His sunglasses had a sporty angled black frame with blaze colored lenses and sat comfortably on his forehead at the base of his hairline. His complexion looked that it was a lighter one turned tan from obviously extended exposure to the sun, but not too dark to signify living in a hot desert type of climate. The only noticeable blemish on his skin was the three claw marks on his right arm that spanned along his outer arm from his triceps to his biceps. The marks were pale white against his bronzed skin. Even sitting you could tell the boy was of slightly above average height (Roughly about 6'0) with a lean body build. His clothes were that of an athlete. He wore blue and white athletic shoes with what looked to be orange low cut socks. His clothing consisted of a light and breathable material. It had the appearance that it had been modified to not only be more flexible but more durable at the same time. His sport shorts were fire orange with cobalt blue stripes up the sides that started appropriately at his waist line and stopped just above the knees. Once you moved up to the matching orange sleeveless shirt the blue stripes on the sides erupted into a flame pattern that stopped just short of his underarms. His shirt also had a symbol on the left side of his chest located right above where the heart would be. His crest started as a base flame that forked into two curved up and met to form a heart of fire. The crest was blue to obviously go along with the boy's color scheme. A noticeable aspect of his crest was that unlike most other crests seen, his was not filled in. Simply a single flame that broke into two, arced away, and then back to each other only to connect again as the joining point at the center of the heart.

Although he was only eighteen years old he emanated a somewhat mature persona that stated he had his fair share of unpleasant experiences. The world of Remnant was by no means a hospitable one. Outside of the major cities small communities had to fight to survive. Knowing that this boy was indeed from a border village, it was assumed that he had to partake in the defense of his home. It was sad to think a teenage boy would have to help fight to allow this small village to maintain its existence in the harsh wilderness.

"And if they weren't good memories they would be something like their first trip to the doctor or maybe, MAAAAYBE something along the lines of them getting hurt but then getting consoled by a loved one." His immediate thought process went to the image of a kid getting a twisted ankle and then being carried by their dad to safety. That was what every kid needed at that age right? Everyone needs that feeling of security that only a parent can provide. He was sure of it, but waved his hand dismissively as he realized he was distracting himself. He quickly moved to continue after he realized his thinking had left a pause in his explanation. "A-and they are not exactly crystal clear" the boy stuttered.

"Not the hellish nightmare that I had to survive" He clenched his fists and grimaced as the images flashed into his mind. "That also loves to keep playing on repeat in my mind every night" He finished with a great amount of loathing in his voice.

The others in the room tensed up. He got it; he was in possession of a powerful aura. He had only met a few people his age who could go toe to toe with him in an all out battle. Then again he was raised in an orphanage for many years. Said orphanage is located in a small town on the outskirts along the border of Vacuo and Vale. So he supposed his early experience in fighting wasn't the best compared to some others who had fought in large scale tournaments and such. The more recent years were not exactly void of action though. Regardless, he released the tension in his fists and tried to relax. This seemed to calm the others and he looked up to give a half-hearted smirk as he continued.

 _Begin the 12 year flashback -_

 _The first thing he remembered was red. Two red orbs that were hiding behind a bone mask and attached to a hideously disfigured wolf-man type of abomination staring right down at him. Its black fur was already coated with blood as it had already had its main course. The boy determined he must have been the desert because it came at him with a type of ferocity that showed he was its sole craving at the moment._

 _As it opened its jaws to crush him like a grape between its razor sharp teeth, something hit it in the side of the head. He turned to see his older sister staring down the beast with a malicious glare and armed with a vase. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!" She yelled and threw the vase. It traveled at a surprisingly quick velocity as it struck the Grimm in the bone mask and he even saw the beast's mask crack a little bit. Needless to say this didn't exactly please the beast as it snarled at the boy's sister and took a step towards her. Her amber eyes didn't show any fear but none the less he made his move to help. "SIS!" He yelled as he bolted beneath the Beowolf and punched the beasts' right knee from the side. It didn't do any damage but did knock the beast slightly off balance. This distracted it long enough for the two children to escape out the front door into the battlefield that was in the streets._

 _The two siblings stopped cold in their tracks as soon as they exited the house. The battlefield was more like a slaughterhouse with the amount of carnage they bore witness to. Grimm filled the streets preying on the defenseless civilians. A few soldiers were trying to defend the town as well as themselves but were so helplessly outnumbered they weren't making much of a difference._

 _It was in that moment that the two siblings forgot the reason they had fled into the open streets in the first place. The pursuing Beowolf then lashed out knocking the girl away while simultaneously catching the young boy's arm with its claws. It pulled its arm back gashing the poor boy's arm with three very distinct wounds. As the boy grabbed his arm he cried out in pain gaining the attention of a nearby soldier._

" _NO!" Yelled the man as he ran to intercept the beast before it could attack the children again. As the boy lay on the ground with the beast towering over him the soldier raised his rifle. The Beowolf attempted to finish off the boy but was pierced by a storm of bullets. The beast fell lifeless and began its postmortem disintegration as the soldier reached the children._

" _Are you alright?" He asked with a mixture of shock and worry both on his face and in his voice. He knelt down to get a closer inspection on the boy's wound._

" _Yes dad." The boy replied but couldn't hide the pain he was in._

" _Take your hand off so I can look at it." The boy's father commanded._

 _He hesitated, but the boy reluctantly agreed. His left hand was now coated in blood from the wound on his opposing arm. After removing his hand he got his first look at the wound and was thrown into a state of shock. He started hyperventilating as his face turned a ghostly pale white._

" _Son! SON!" The boy was brought back to reality with a firm shaking of his shoulders from his father. "Look it's not all that bad." He said nodding down to the injured arm. "It's just a deep scratch from the looks of it. No muscle or bone damage so it should heal." He then smiled crookedly and exhaled a single chuckle. "As a matter a fact it might just leave a badass scar. Ladies love that."_

 _The boy then made eye contact and slightly smiled. Even in the middle of a warzone with his youngest child hurt, his father's humor shown through. It was at that moment the boy's sister joined the family reunion and gave her father one of the iciest 'go to hell' looks he had ever seen._

" _DAD! How can you be making jokes at a time like this? He could have DIED!" She made it a very clear point to emphasize that last word. She made her point though and her father's demeanor quickly changed back to a very serious one._

" _Relax sweetheart I was just trying to comfort your brother. But we do need to clean this wound and bandage it. Unfortunately, all my medical supplies I left back with the doctor. So we need to get back into the house for the med kit under the sink." He nodded with his head back to their home behind the children. However, the two young ones seemed reluctant to go back inside._

" _Dad that thing found us in there so I don't really want to go back in." The boy summarized to his father._

" _Well we can't exactly stay out in the open while I try to patch you up." To emphasize his point he turned to his left and shot a charging Beowolf. The monster fell dead before it got too close to the party but that also gathered the attention of more nearby Grimm._

" _Alright, inside now!" He commanded while unloading the rest of his clip into the oncoming group of Grimm. The family retreated back to their home and ducked inside just in time. As their father slammed the door behind them and threw down the wooden door brace, the sound of the demonic animals ramming themselves mindlessly against the steady barricade was deafening. After a few minutes of praying the door would hold, the beasts seemed to grow tired and only the distant sounds of fighting were heard._

" _Well then, shall we take a look at that arm then?" Both children gave a bewildered look to their father and his ability to keep calm in these circumstances. He grabbed the med kit and cleaned the boy's wound with antiseptic. He then bandaged the arm skillfully so that the boy could still use his arm in case of an emergency. In the moments it took for the father to take care of his son the sounds of battle faded away._

 _"Well, now that we are done here, I'm going to gather a few things and then we will head out. Sweetie?" He looked to his daughter and got her attention. "Would you check the back door to make sure it's safe? Be extremely careful and no matter what do not give our position away. Understood?"_

 _The girl nodded and left towards the back of the house. As their father left to get his things, the young boy was left alone to his thoughts. He then realized that this could be the last time he would ever see his beloved home and thought to take something memorable. He found a family picture from last year's Christmas and removed it from the frame._

" _What are you doing?" He turned around to see his sister with her hands on her hips looking at him accusingly._

 _"I'm taking this just in case we never come back." The boy said innocently. He folded the picture up and stuck it in his back pants pocket._

 _"Don't talk like that." She demanded but the look on her face was one of realization that her baby brother could be right. As she realized this she began looking over the downstairs of their home, seeming to take in all the memories and images she could. She then scanned the living room but before she could settle on something their father came back from the other room with a backpack of supplies._

 _"Alrighty then how does the back of the house look sweetie?"_

 _"Its clear dad. It was almost too clear. There was no sign of anything moving and no sound what so ever."_

 _"So you suspect a trap?" The dad rubbed his chin thoughtfully and then said with a laugh, "Huh, I've taught you well kiddo. Alright but it's our best bet of a safe escape so follow me and keep close. Also, here." He revealed two handguns which he distributed to his children. "You may not know how to use these but the basic idea is point this end at the bad guys and pull the trigger. See these white dots on the top?" The children looked at their firearms and nodded. "Look down the sights and line the two back dots up with the front dot so that all three are in a nice even line." The children did so not realizing they were pointing the guns directly at their dad. "Whoa whoa watch it you two! That's the dangerous end you are pointing at me!" The kids brought the guns down quickly and gave a mumbled sorry to their dad. They then pointed the guns away from their dad and looked down their sights. "Ok when you line the three dots in a row you have a good aim on your target then you pull the trigger." At that moment he heard a click of a firing pin being released._

"… _That… is why I didn't give you these yet." He said now pulling two clips from the backpack and handing them to the kids. "Slide these in the bottom of your handle and pull the top of the gun back." The children did so with a small amount of help being given to the boy by his father. "Great now you are ready to kill your first Grimm!" Their dad seemed almost proud and then he changed his tone to a more serious one. "I pray that you don't have to use these but if it comes to it you protect yourselves. Ok?"_

 _Both of the children (now feeling slightly more mature because they had real life weapons in their hands) nodded in agreement to their father's instructions. They then began checking over their new prized possessions with care._

 _"Alright. Now let's head out and go find your mother." As he said it their father moved towards the back door and slapped a new clip into his assault rifle. He cocked the gun with an over emphasized click and then unlocked the door. "I'll lead. Follow all of my instructions exactly as I say them. When I say move, move. If I tell you to stay put you do not move until I tell you to. Do NOT make any unnecessary noise. Understood?" He looked to see both kids nodding their heads with a mixture of excitement and nervousness._

 _"Wait dad." The boy decided to ask a question before they headed out. "How are we going to find mom in all this?"_

 _He was met with muffled chuckling from his father. "Well you know how your mom is the strongest fighter you know right?" Both kids nodded again. "Well we just need to head to the area that has the most Grimm. The most fighting means that's where your mom will be. I'm going to guess the town hall is the ideal spot to start our search." With that he opened the door and they moved into the alley out the back of their house in the direction of what sounded like where the center of the battle was._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Every Hero Needs a Beginning

 _After cautiously moving down the back alleys and through back yards they reached the edge of the town square. The family entered a shop from the back door and quietly moved through it to the shattered front window to see what the ground between them and their intended destination looked like. The point of taking their route was to avoid as much attention from the hungry beasts as possible. Upon inspecting the ruined town square, it became evident that they weren't going to be able to achieve their goal here. The courtyard was littered with various species of Grimm. Beowolves, Ursi, Creeps, and a few Boarbatusks. However, most of them had their attention on the large fortified structure in the center of the square known as their town hall. It was boarded up and looked to still be structurally sound but there was no visible sign of survivors there. The children's dad, however, had an optimistic sense about him._

 _"Alright kids, here is what we need to do." He spoke in a whisper as to not attract any unneeded attention from a group of nearby creeps. They seemed to be almost done picking a pile of nearby bodies clean. "Don't look at that." He noticed what his children were looking at and tried to distract them. It wasn't like they weren't going to see anything like this in this situation but he still wanted to keep as much of his children's innocence as he could. Quietly snapping his fingers in front of their faces he was able to pry their eyes away from the gruesome scene and back to his green eyes. "I'm sorry you have to see all this. Truly I am, but we need to focus. We need to get there." He pointed to the town hall that now had a Boarbatusk curling its body to spin into the front door. Almost acting like a battering ram._

 _The boy nodded, but it was the girl that spoke up. "So what's the plan? It's not like we can just walk through that horde. We are going to need a distraction or something."_

 _The dad chuckled and looked at her with adoration. "I'm so proud of you. You know that? You really are the brightest kid your age. Just like your momma."_

 _The girl rolled her eyes and gave her dad a one sided smirk. "Focus dad. Do you have any ideas?"_

 _"Well since you are the one who pointed it out how about you come up with a plan?"_

 _She frowned at her dad with that comment. "Really? Now is the time you think would be good for one of your little tests?" Her voice was laced with annoyance._

 _"Hey guys" the boy brought both of their attention to that group of creeps that were moving closer to their position now that they were done with the corpses._

 _"Alright alright I'll let you off this time." The dad spoke to the daughter almost annoyed but gave her a quick wink to tease her. Before she could make a comeback, he began his instructions. "So we will need some wood and paper. We need to set a fire in a building on the far edge of the square and then move through the buildings around the horde so we can get to the town hall safely. Quickly and quietly get some of those supplies. Go!"_

 _With that the two kids split up and quickly found the necessary materials. Once they were equipped with enough fuel for the fire they moved unnoticed to the far end of the square and made their preparations. Once it was set up they prepared a fuse of paper to the main pile. With a flick of a lighter, the father set the paper fuse on fire and started moving the family through the buildings._

 _"Up ahead is an alley. It's going to make us have to leave cover and run across open ground for a second. I'll go first to make sure it's clear and then you two follow one at a time. Understood?" Both of the kids nodded as they reached the door to the alley. Their father checked both directions to check if it was clear. Seeing as he saw it was he ran across to the other side and checked the door. He found it locked and kicked the door in. Then it was the daughter's turn to run to safety. As she got just over halfway and then it happened._

 _A low guttural sound came from the roof above where the father was housed. The boy looked up to see that pack of creeps had somehow perched themselves on the rooftops. As his sister ran to her father a few of them jumped into the alley effectively cutting the young boy off from the rest of his family._

 _"RUN !" His father commanded as he tried to fend off the monsters trying to get in the door after him and the girl. The boy, now having the attention of the rest of the creeps that stood on the rooftops, made a sprint for the end of the alley in the direction of the town hall. Once he made it to the square, he noticed the majority of the horde was near the end where the building was on fire, but a few still stood between him and the hall. With this the boy froze for a split second as an Ursa charged him. A few gunshots rang out causing the ursa to fall lifelessly at the boy's feet._

 _"Keep moving!" He turned to see his father with his assault rifle at the ready to cover the boy in his escape. He also noticed the creeps were still pursuing him so he turned and made a dash for the supposed safety of the town hall. As he surveyed his plausible routes he noticed there were exactly five creeps following him, with three Beowolves, two Deathstalkers, and an Ursa in front of him. Luckily none were majors or alphas but they still towered over the small boy. The nearest Grimm, a Deathstalker, quickly was cut down from a volley of bullets released by the boy's father._

 _"Do not… STOP! Keep running and I'll make sure you make it safely!" The shout came from the boy's father stationed in the doorway of the building behind him. He heavily emphasized the word "stop" by slamming a new clip of ammunition into his rifle._

 _The boy continued to run while avoiding the reach of the dark beasts. He moved to the left, a Beowulf made a swipe at him only to be cut down by his father's cover fire again. To the right this time, the other Deathstalker made a jab at him with its poisonous stinger. The boy had only recently begun his training with his mother but his instincts were sharpened enough to duck his head to the left into a forward roll to successfully dodge the impaling blow. Getting his bearings after the roll he looked back to his father now flanked by his sister. All the creeps behind him had been cut down by the duo. Now only to worry about the last three Grimm between him and the fortified town hall that he could only pray would be a safe haven. At this thought he noticed movement from the aforementioned building. The building sprang to life with the flash of gunfire emanating from the building as the remaining three Grimm standing between the building and the boy were quickly decimated. The boy sighed thinking the worst was behind him and he was now safe._

 _But we all know those thoughts are only a delusion in instances such as this one. A low rumbling caught the boy's attention and for a moment he eyed the rest of the horde that had now turned its attention back to the party trying to make their way to the town hall. They were moving their way across the square to the boy but he knew if he hurried he would be in no immediate danger. He turned to run but a louder rumble arrived. This time it made its presence undeniable as the boy had to regain his balance due to the ground shaking. He knew there was only one type of Grimm that could have this effect… Goliaths. The boy turned in time to see red eyes accompanied by a set of white tusks appear over the line of buildings behind him. The same set of buildings in which his father and sister were currently held up. His eyes grew wide in shock and met his father's for a split second. Then his father and sister were gone._

 _The massive Grimm came stampeding through the buildings like they were a slight inconvenience to their built up momentum. Splinters and chunks of other materials were sent flying outwards in the direction of the boy. In the split second that it took the Grimm to pile through the buildings the boy took notice of how one of the four Goliaths had trampled directly over where his father and sister were standing before he lost sight of them. He also noticed as the beasts closed on him that the building they had been held up in was now completely obliterated and lay as flat as a piece of paper on a desk._

 _It was in this moment of realization that the boy realized he still had the pistol in his right hand and raised it. He would take these monsters down to avenge his family. His rage built as he aimed at the closest Goliath that also just so happened to be the one that had trampled his father and sister. He pulled the trigger but felt no kick of the weapon. For a moment he was stunned because although he had heard the click of the gun, he felt no force that he assumed the pistol would exert from discharging a bullet. He looked up to see a surprising sight. It had worked. The massive beast was now fifty meters from him and closing but was now complexly immersed in flames. He realized this must be a special gun his father had given him. Until realization hit him and he heard the footsteps behind him._

 _He turned to see a woman with fire seeping out of her eyes marching with a seething fury at the line of Goliaths, raising her hands to each one individually with her palm forward. As she raised her hand to each Goliath it was engulfed in fire just like the first one had been. As each one fell victim to the fire smothering its body they quickly stopped in their tracks and tried to shake off the flames violently. Thrashing about as if their sudden movements of desperation would create enough wind to snuff out the flames. Their attempts were useless though as one by one they fell to the ground and began their evaporation. The boy looked back to his savior as it could only be one person in the world with those abilities._

 _"M-mom!" The boy gasped. The full force of what had just transpired over the past few minutes hit him full force as he wrapped his arms around her mid section and buried his weeping face into her abdomen. She would have fallen to her knees to sit there and weep with him but they had more pressing needs to attend to. Like the angry horde of Grimm that was now almost upon them._

 _"We have to move! Now!" She said now shaking him slightly from her so he could understand the severity of having an emotional breakdown now in the middle of a war zone. The boy quickly dislodged himself from her and gathered himself to stand behind his mother. She quickly summoned two fire balls from her hands and threw them at the approaching enemies._

 _"Get to the hall! We have to get you to safety so I can fend them off!" She was handling the Grimm with her ranged attacks but they were pressing their offensive against her and their swipes were starting to get dangerously close to her. The boy turned to flee but he realized their escape was cut off as the horde was now attempting to surround them._

 _"Mom! I can't!" His response to her command earned an irritated glance his way that quickly turned into one of realization. They would soon be completely surrounded by the sheer number of Grimm and protecting her baby boy would be all but impossible if this continued. She needed to do something. As she continued to fend off approaching Grimm by now turning her hands into full fledged flame throwers and moving her arms side to side to give them a circular perimeter. It allowed her to have some room to think. A flash of realization came across her face as she turned to her son._

 _"Quick! Come here and hold onto me!" He obeyed and as soon as he had a hold of her side she stopped her flame thrower hands and pulled her arms down to her sides at a bent angle as if she was channeling something. Then she opened her eyes and he noticed they were spitting flames again from the corners to almost make the appearance of wings upon her face. She then gave a yell that could only be described as a war cry and released all her energy._

 _It came as what would appear as a shock wave in all directions with the focus being the woman and her son. With that all Grimm in their immediate vicinity were incinerated on the spot. Those that were not close enough for that were thrown back from the force of the attack. She looked up to see the damage and realized they only had a few moments to put her plan into motion. She quickly turned to her son and knelt down to get eye level with him._

 _"I am going to unlock your aura."_

 _"W-uh-What?"_

 _"Son there is no time. With your aura unlocked you will be better able to defend yourself if anything worse is to happen. I know it's too early for this but we have no other choice." She spoke with determination but it was obvious to the boy this seemed like a last ditch effort in case things went all the hell._

 _"Why can't we just run to the hall?" The boy asked but then his mother's expression was one of sorrow as she nodded her head in the direction of the hall. What the boy turned to see made his heart drop._

 _The hall had been over run. Grimm were literally climbing all over the supposed fort and many holes in the sides of the building made it obvious the beasts had made it inside. A few screams pierced the roars that seemed to have taken over the noise of the now defeated town hall. In fact it appeared the only reason that the mother and her son had lasted this long without being jumped again was because the majority of the horde was now focused on the easy prey. With that realization the boy turned back to his mother._

 _"I'm going to have to make this quick" she said in a solemn tone. She then put both of her hands on the sides of his head. Thumbs pointed upwards in front of the ears along his jaw line with her fingers wrapped around the back of his head. She pulled him in so that their foreheads were touching and she flared her aura so that fire was covering her as she spoke the ritualistic phrase._

 _"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this, we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all. Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder, protect thee."_

 _With this the boy's eyes shot open wide as he could feel the power. The spark seemed to start directly in the center of his body and as it spread he could not help but feel like he should be in a great amount of pain. However all he could feel was a great amount of discomfort. The feeling could only be described as a paralyzing one that caused his body to lock up due to the foreign feeling of what was not exactly pain but was also not normalcy. As the feeling spread from his core and pulsed towards the outer areas of his body it made his nerves feel like they were going to burst. The intense feeling continued until the only untouched area of the boy's body was his eyes. The moment they were enveloped his eyes sparked to life, literally. The same orange flame that leaked from his mother's eyes as she used her powers erupted into his own. It was at that moment that the feeling of abnormal uneasiness in his body vanished and he felt like himself again. No, not exactly like himself, but a better version of himself. He felt like he was stronger. He felt like he was more perceptive to his reflexes now. He felt like he could take on anything now. With a blink the flames in his eyes flickered off. He then looked to his mother to see her smiling at him._

" _I-I have never seen anything like this before. Your aura and semblance appear to be exactly like mine!" Shocked she looked the boy over to see him glowing a bright orange. The glow slowly dulled and the boy appeared to be fine except for the now scar on his right arm from the earlier Beowulf attack. Apparently that one was never going to heal. Looking at her son with a newfound adoration that she never thought possible she sighed. "I'm so proud of you" she gasped out as tears began to well up in her eyes. He smiled back at her but then realization hit them both as they were horrifically brought back to the reality of their situation._

 _The horde had recovered and was preparing to commence a new attack at the duo. The mother got into a defensive stance but was noticeably winded from the previous battles and the unlocking of her son's aura. The Grimm however, seemed more cautious of their attack this time. Instead of surrounding them they seemed to form up in a big black wall of bone armor and gnashing teeth. Last time they were surrounded but this time they were facing what appeared to be a formed army._

 _"This isn't good." The boy's mother hissed through clenched teeth. "Grimm are mindless. They don't just change tactics like a well led battalion would." With that the first wave of Grimm charged them._

 _The cannon fodder wave of Grimm was quickly dispatched by the boy's mother. But her battling the first group allowed the second group to get closer before she was able to engage them. The waves of Grimm kept increasing in number, ferocity, and size. Each one pushing the line of attack farther and farther against the mother-son duo until they were in hand to hand range. The mother had pulled out her symmetrical double sided pole arm. The blades on each side faced a single direction that if the weapon was stood on one end would appear the blades were facing opposite each other. In reality if you flipped the weapon it would look exactly the same which showed the true ability of her weapon, spinning attacks. That was what she was fighting with at the moment as she put some of her aura into the weapon. This caused the blades to glow a heated red to allow for more efficient slicing strikes._

 _As she kept dismembering Grimm left and right one Boarbatusk made a leap over her and headed straight for the boy. It curled up into a head-over-heals ball and began its spinning attack towards the supposed defenseless boy. The only thing the poor kid could think to do was to raise his hands in defense. Surprisingly it worked and he stopped the spinning attack of the deranged animal and dazed it. It did not stay stunned for long as it then swung its tusks at the boy. Once again all he could think to do was to defend himself the same way he had with the previous attack and raised his arms. This time as his hands deflected the sharp tusks using his aura, he latched onto them holding the beast in place._

 _His mother, know noticing her baby boy was in a fight for his life, knocked her enemies back to give her some space. She twisted her weapon at the center with caused the pole arm to detach at the center, creating two small battle axes. She turned and threw one axe at the Boarbatusk trying to free itself from her son's grasp. The axe found its mark and tore through the hindquarters of the beast. It must have severed the spinal column in some way because the beast went limp in the boy's hands but was still gasping for air. As the boy looked to his mother he saw her fighting desperately with only one of the battle axes now. Her eyes, once spewing an orange flame, now were their normal yellow color. That, along with her obvious exhaustion, was the sign that her aura was almost completely tapped out._

 _Then his mother sliced a King Taijitu's white head off only to be blindsided by the other black head. It attacked from her right side knocking against her arm and throwing her lone remaining weapon to the ground. Disarmed she punched the remaining head of the two headed snake in its left eye. Her fist going into the very inner sanctum of the creature's skull killing it instantly. This killing blow however left her immobilized for a split second. She had neglected to see the alpha Deathstalker raising its stinger to strike the last remaining threat in the town. The boy stared wide eyed as the oversized scorpion brought its stinger down to his mother._

 _Tensed up for some reason, she turned her head to look to her son. For some reason it was an extreme battle against her own body to do the simplest of movements. When she made eye contact it was apparent all she could see in his eyes was fear and disbelief. His eyes weren't fixed on hers though for some reason, they were glued on her torso. She looked down to her horror to see the end of a Deathstalker stinger sticking through her body and stuck into the ground. She turned back to look at her son and she gave a loving smile as her goodbye. As she smiled the stinger was wrenched back through her body leaving a gaping hole in the center of her body. She fell lifelessly to the stone covered ground. Her son looked upon helpless to save her._

" _NOOOOO!" he shrieked._

 _It was at this moment that he felt something he had never felt before._

 _Rage._

 _Pure unadulterated rage._

 _He wanted them all dead. Every Grimm, every mindless beast, every evil being in the world, he wanted them all to be wiped out._

 _It was with this that his body started glowing. The luminescent glow quickly elevated to a full-fledged orange fire engulfing his body. With this his eyes were spewing flames as well with their signature look of leaking out of the corners to make the appearance of giving wings to his face. Although this time they gave off a deadly look. Much more sinister than they had appeared the past time they sparked to life. They were almost evil when compared to the similar feature on his mother's face even when she was angry or in battle._

 _He raised his hand to the giant Deathstalker, palm forward as he had seen his mother do to the goliath's. Immediately the giant arachnid screeched in pain as flames consumed its entire form. As the Grimm's screams slowly withered away the remaining forces of the horde now stood still in shock. He didn't take the time to notice this odd behavior for he then ran to pick up the corpse of his beloved mother. He knelt beside her and gathered her up in his arms. Surprisingly neither she nor her clothing caught fire. The boy hugged her tightly and began to wail. At this point the Grimm had overcome their stupor and began charging the boy again._

 _Tear filled eyes looked up to see the enclosing beasts and his rage built even further. He gave a thunderous battle cry and with it released all his emotions into his aura. The power of his aura created a sonic boom that originated at the boy's position and then resonated outwards. The boy felt the power come over him and release and then he blacked out._

 _He opened his eyes to find himself still cradling his dead mother. The sounds of Grimm could not be heard but he did notice something rather odd. Instead of being in the town square, they were now in what appeared to be a scorched crater. The boy was still groggy and barely holding onto his consciousness. He looked down to the person in his arms and he began weeping._

 _"I'm sorry mom" He spluttered with tear filled eyes. "I'm sorry I couldn't help. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to protect you." For minutes he sat there apologizing to an unresponsive crowd ranging from his father and sister to random villagers he had rarely even met. After his repentance to the souls of those long gone, he sat there and cried until a sound broke his concentration. A snarl, followed by a howl of a Beowulf pierced the dead silence of the crater. He looked up to see a few Beowolves glaring down at him. Realizing his aura was depleted and he was basically defenseless all he could do was glare back. Once again his vision blurred as he attempted to focus. The Grimm charged him intent on finishing their job. As they approached he could only accept his fate and he spared one last glance down to his mother. After taking in her appearance for what he felt was the final time he looked back up to stare down the black death that was quickly approaching him. As they neared his location the closest one raised its right claw to slash him. His vision blurred again only to hear multiple yelping noises and a white blur suddenly appear in front of him. His vision refocused to see a woman in a white cloak with her back to him. All the previously charging Beowolves had been suddenly cut in half. The way she was positioned and the way the light reflected off of her form, there was only one word that came to mind._

 _"A-angel" He stuttered._

 _With that she turned around to look at him. Silver eyes met a sight she had not yet seen, eyes that flickered with a flame. That flame in his eyes was dwindling at the moment though as the boy began to lose consciousness again. Although she was curious about the young boy who was holding his recently passed away mother she had no time. He needed consoling and her seemingly motherly instincts took over._

 _"Easy, eeeasy." Her voice was full of compassion towards the poor boy. He began to slump over but she caught him. She quickly knelt behind him and held him upright using her own body as a support for him to rest into. With a sigh the boy closed his eyes and rested against his guardian angel._

 _"Is that…?" An unknown male voice startled the boy and he re-opened his eyes to see a rather frazzled looking blonde haired man staring at him. The boy had to re-adjust his vision again and looked at the man with a quizzical glare. Only to realize what he was staring at. The boy was still clutching onto his mom._

 _"Looks like it hon" said the female voice he recognized as his savior. The boy turned to see his angel supporting him. Then a rough looking man in grey clothing holding a large looking sword over his shoulder sauntered over to the blonde man._

 _"Ah shit. Well that's not good" Said the grey clad man._

 _"Not good?" The boy could barely get the words out but he still had to restrain himself from yelling at the men staring. "You mean how she died to save me?" He felt the angel holding him up tense up and watched the two men shuffle uncomfortably. He waited for somebody to say something but just then they were cut off by a dark red portal opening up and a woman wearing a red and black warrior outfit stepped through. She appeared behind the two men who seemed oblivious to her presence._

 _The boy didn't see the outfit or the fact that she was even human at first though. All he saw was her mask. It had a very disturbing similarity to the bone mask of a nevermore. In his exhausted state the boy only saw an enemy emerging and he summoned what little left of his aura he had. His right hand left its hold on his mother and curled it as if he were to be holding a ball. At that moment a weak fireball formed in his hand as his eyes sparked to life once again._

" _Be…hind…you." The boy weakly gasped and threw the fireball between the two men's heads directly at his target. Then he blacked out again._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Aftermath of the STRQ

 _When he came to he found himself not in the town square anymore. Instead he was on the outskirts of the village slightly inside the forest. Far enough in to avoid immediate detection from the possible still rampant horde within the village but close enough to the edge to get to a quick escape vehicle if it ever arrived. He then took in the rest of his surroundings once his vision completely settled. They had set up camp inside of a small clearing. A small campfire illuminated the area surrounded by 3 sleeping bags not including the one the boy seemed to be in. He then noticed the two unfamiliar arms wrapped around him on the outside of the sleeping bag._

" _GAAHHH!" He nearly jumped clear of the bag and the embrace of the person behind him from his surprise but the bag caught on his ankles causing him to face plant into the ground._

 _"I think he's up" chuckled a now familiar voice from behind him. Turning his head he noticed the white cloaked figure who had rescued him back in the town square._

 _"Angel?" The boy asked._

 _She blushed a furious red at the name and pulled her hood back over her head to try to mask herself. A hearty chuckle then interrupted the boy's attention to his guardian angel and he turned to see the blonde haired man._

 _"Hey kid only I get to call her that." He had a confident grin on his face that helped ease the boy's nerves as he lounged on one of the sleeping bags. His right arm was wrapped up with bloody bandages and in a sling to prevent him from moving it unnecessarily._

 _"Augh" came a groan from one of the other sleeping bags. "Can you two at least TRY to not flirt so much on these missions?" The owner of that voice was the grey outfitted man as he emerged from his cloth sanctuary holding a metal flask._

 _"Qrow, Tai, knock it off. We have somebody else here to look after other than you two trying to show which one of you is more macho." The boy sat up and turned back to the woman who he only knew as his angel as she pulled her hood back down to reveal her face. For the first time he got a good look at her. A young looking face with a sense of maturity to it as well. She had black hair with red tips and gleaming silver eyes._

 _A grumbled, "No doubt I'd win" came from the blonde haired man and the boy turned to giggle at him. The blonde realizing he had said that loud enough for the boy to hear winced and clamped his mouth shut._

 _"So where is the other lady?" The boy's question had different effects on the three young adults. The white angel made a hushed 'eep', the silver man groaned, and the blonde man looked completely stunned._

 _"What did you say?" The blonde asked the boy almost threateningly._

 _"The other lady, I didn't know she was a lady until I had already thrown my fireball at her. All I saw was a red circle and a bone mask walk out of it. I'd like to apologize to her if that's ok?" The boy's reply didn't seem to ease the blonde's tension._

 _Before anyone else could talk the same red portal opened up on the opposite side of the fire from the blonde and out stepped the woman in question. Mask still on she approached the boy as he quickly rose to his feet. Once she stood in front of him she paused a moment before kneeling down to meet his eye level._

 _"Do I frighten you?" The voice was more serious and darker than the white angel's voice. Still it had the same motherly tone to it that caused the boy's confidence to rise._

 _"No."_

 _The mask tilted slightly to its left. "Then care to explain why you tried to barbeque me?"_

 _"I already told the others" the boy quipped back._

 _"I didn't ask them I asked you" snapped the creepy mask._

 _"Um… well…" The boy was now nervous because the voice had turned more hostile and turned his gaze down towards the ground. "I-I didn't mean to. My eyes were blurry. All I saw was a dark circle and what looked like a Grimm head appear from it. The two men didn't see it so I thought they were in trouble. So I tried to protect them." The boy raised his eyes to meet the red ones of the mask. After a pause the woman raised her arms to remove the mask. As she lowered the mask the boy was surprised to still be met by red eyes. She had a stern yet beautiful face that was surrounded by a mane of pitch black hair. As she put the mask down she smirked at the boy and ruffled his hair._

 _"Good answer. I like this kid." She then stood up to address the rest of the group. She was cut off quickly by an enraged blonde though._

 _"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?" The blonde was on his feet now looking as if he were ready to rush the red eyed woman._

 _"I am not at liberty to discuss that Tai." The woman spoke calmly as if she knew she was in no real danger. The boy however, cowered behind her looking at the enraged man from behind her. Seeing this the man visibly deflated, sitting back down to try and relax._

 _"Alright well can you at least…"_

 _"Actually guys I think we need to focus more on the mission right now. Or more importantly this little guy here." The angel interrupted Tai's question to the red eyed lady._

 _"That's right" the man now known as Qrow chimed in. "A few questions kid. First off, how the hell can you summon fire like that?"_

 _All eyes turned to the boy and he just sighed and brought up his right hand cupped upwards. A small flame burst from his hand and his eyes lit up as he began his quick explanation. "I don't know. All I know is my mom said she had to unlock my aura. She placed her hands on my head and said something. Then I felt really weird, I watched her die, and then I got so mad that I burnt all the Grimm I could see." With that the boy shut his hand into a fist and the flame disappeared._

 _"Wait…MOM!"_

 _The young boy whirred around looking for the sight of his mother. A hand then grabbed his shoulder. He looked up to see the red eyed woman still with a stern face with her eyes fixed on his. She then looked to her right and nodded to the white angel. She then stood up and motioned behind where she had been sitting. The boy lingered for a bit not wanting to face the fact again but he finally relented and began a slow moping trudge to where his angel had motioned towards. He stood next to her and looked down to find a black body bag not ten feet behind where he and the angel had been resting._

 _He immediately turned away and ran into the white clad angel grasping her in a full embrace around her mid-section. She returned the hug, holding the young boy tightly._

" _W-w-what about my s-sister? A-and father?" Muffled cries came from the boy's face being buried in the angel's cloak. He pulled his head out still sobbing, "You found them right?"_

 _The group all exchanged worried looks with each other. Showing the boy they had no idea about any family the boy was missing._

" _Kid… there was nobody else alive in that village." Qrow was the one to break the news to the boy. The kid was enraged. Seething at the blunt message that also had a double meaning, the boy turned to the now standing warrior._

" _YOU DIDN'T SAVE ANYONE ELSE?" The boy howled at Qrow but was quickly muffled by the pale hand of the angel. The boy in his frustration attempted to break free by flailing about but she gently kept her hold on him._

" _We had only just gotten there when we saw those Beowolves bearing down on you. A large wave of fire hit our bullhead and made us crash. By the time we made it to the rendezvous point all we found was you and your mother in the middle of a huge crater with a pack of Beowolves charging you." With that the angel dropped her hand from the boy's mouth and released him from her hold. He turned to glare at her but his menacing stare was cut short when he saw the softness in her eyes._

" _Besides," continued the red eyed lady, "our mission was to get her." The nod towards the body bag told the boy the answer to his next question._

" _Why just her?" It was an innocent question that came from the boy. One that the older members of the party knew had a very complex answer. How could the boy understand? How could they simplify something so that he could get the answer? Then the answer to their prayers came from a very unlikely source._

" _She was…special. We were supposed to find her and keep her safe. Help anyone else that we could, but our ultimate goal was to protect her. We failed her. When we contacted her she made us promise to protect her children. And we WILL honor that promise." Tai's words were short and to the point. The boy started sobbing again but nodded furiously to let them know he got the message. He latched onto the angel for the last time before the sound whirring got their attention._

 _Qrow quickly grabbed a flare gun and fired it into the now dawning sky. The whirring sound got louder until a bullhead was hovering right above the small clearing. The ship began its decent as the party finished packing up its campsite. Once the bullhead had safely landed they started heading towards the open side of the ship. Once Qrow and the red eyed lady loaded the cargo and the body bag the pilot leaned back to converse with the group._

" _That her?" He asked motioning with his head towards the black bag._

 _The only answer the man got was a few nods from the older members of the party._

" _Damn. Well new orders. Your group is to go back into the town to clear out the horde. Once the town is clear of all Grimm activity we will extract you. Understood?"_

" _What about the boy?" The angel asked while lifting the kid into the passenger area of the bullhead._

" _He can come with me to safety. Your team has a mission. I'll get him back to the base of operations and let the commander determine what to do with him." Although the group obviously didn't like that option, they didn't have much of a choice._

" _Tai, you are too hurt to continue. You will go back to the base with him and get your arm looked at." The angel ordered while the blonde man prepared to argue with her. She brought her hand up to silence him and leaned closer so that only she, the blonde, and the boy could hear. "Listen somebody needs to take care of him. You are hurt and aren't much use with only one working arm. You escort him back to the base and make sure he is properly taken care of. If you get fixed up and want to come back, then fine. But take care of this little guy first." She narrowed her eyes at the blonde almost daring him to challenge her but he relented._

" _Alright babe, fine. But you owe me for this one." With a wink he brought her in for a hug and then sat on the side of the ship. He then turned his attention to the red eyed lady._

" _Don't think you're getting out of this one. We need to have a nice long talk about you leaving and where you have been." With his good hand he pointed a finger at her. She only scoffed at him in return._

 _With that the boy settled in next to the blonde man sitting along the side of the bullhead but letting their legs dangle off the side. Once the pilot took off the boy latched onto the big man. He winced in pain since the boy leaned on his bad arm but he raised it so his bandage and sling helped wrap the boy closer into the man's side. With that the boy tried to look back to the bag that his mother lay in but the man stopped him._

" _Don't look. You should really watch this view. It's actually pretty nice." With that the boy looked to what the man was referencing. The sun was starting to come up behind the smoking ruins of the town. The sight that the boy stared at had a simultaneous mixture of serenity and chaos. Then the memories of what he had experienced and lost in the past twenty four hours hit him like a sucker punch into the gut. Once again he began crying. This time it wasn't a small sobbing though. This time he began wailing and truly mourning the loss of everything he had ever held dear to him. With that the blonde man pulled the boy closer and let him weep._

Back to the present –

"Do you know what I learned at that moment sir?" The orange haired boy asked his interrogator. The large grey haired man with a thick moustache leaned forward so that his face came into the light from the lamp. "Although at the time I did not realize it, I discovered that there was nothing else I would rather do for other people than what those four hunters and huntresses did for me. They saved me, both physically and emotionally. They protected a boy who could not protect himself and cared for me as if I was their own child." He sat up straight in the stiff chair to try and convey the seriousness of the next words he was about to speak to them.

"When you asked me why I wish to go to Beacon, to become a hunter, I told you this story to emphasize the point I am about to tell you. I want to be like them, the team that saved my life. I want to be strong, I want to be fearless, I want to save lives. Most importantly, I want to make a difference on this world for the better. I truly believe that being a hunter is the best path that can help me achieve these goals of my life. For that, I turn to you. Beacon academy is world renowned and by far the best choice as far as hunter academies go. I wish to be the best; therefore I want to learn from the best." With that the young man finished and stared into the grey bushy eyebrows that he assumed were where the burly man's eyes were hidden. He sighed and then cleared his voice.

"My boy, that was quite the riveting tale. One that even in my many years do I have any that could even compare." He chuckled

"So I have heard." The boy chuckled in return and smiled. To his surprise the reaction from the man was a stern look and a quirked eyebrow.

"Oh sir, I have heard the legendary ability of Professor Port and his gusto towards his own stories." The orange haired boy's chuckles began to evolve into uncontrollable laughter as Port began to puff up to give his defense.

"See Peter? This boy already knows exactly how to get on your good side and we haven't even officially accepted him yet." The third party in the room finally made themselves known with a monotone chuckle of his own. His statement visibly deflated Port stopping his rebuttal of the boy's statement. Stepping into the light was a grey haired man with a green scarf fitted tightly around his neck and black eyeglasses sitting loosely on the bridge of his nose.

"Do you know who I am young man?" He asked the question with what sounded like no emotion in his voice. The teenager could not read from the man's expressions either. Did he really think that he didn't know who he was or was he just asking so the answer could be followed up with another question?

"You are Professor Ozpin. The Headmaster of Beacon Academy." The boy replied. He attempted to hide the sense of wonder in his voice of meeting the Headmaster in person but it must have slipped out as the Headmaster himself gave an amused "hmm."

"Young man there is no doubt you possess the potential and skills necessary for those I wish to have at my academy. However your particular background states that you already have a great deal of advanced combat skill and schooling in the most recent years. So my next question is a simple one yet I wish for you to answer with complete honesty. Why go to an academy to train hunters and huntresses when you already possess many of the skills to reach it quicker via other means?"

The boy pondered the question intently. It was easy to him why he wanted to do this but he had no idea how to convey that message. Or if it was even what the Headmaster would consider it being a valid reason. He decided to give his most heartfelt answer and prayed that it would make sense.

"As we have already discussed and you know beyond my story, my childhood was not the easiest. I survived tragedy and lived in the orphanage system for many years before striking out on my own adventures for the past four years. In that time I learned from a secret society about how to survive on my own, gained a vast amount of knowledge from their education, and had the best combat instructor one could possibly ask for. They wanted me to join them in their crusade for a better world but once I saw the complete picture of what their perfect world looks like I could not accept their views as my own. For the safety of everybody in this room I will not further dive into this topic but needless to say I cannot fight for a cause that I feel is more forced upon me than one I can accept as my own. Although I feel my cause is already clear to me, I would like the chance to improve my skills as a person, a warrior, and a student at your academy. While there I would also see how my own views combined with the views of others will affect my outlook onto what it truly means to be a hunter. Call it a vision quest if you will, but I also wish to achieve the title of hunter through the proper channels."

"So you are not certain you understand what a hunter is but you wish to become one?" Ozpin's next question came rather predictably.

"My views on what a hunter may be are solely my own. I may be slightly biased in taking my own views on this subject though. I would be lying if I said that I am not curious about what others think about our role in this world. I know hunters and huntresses are viewed as protectors of the people and that is what I wish to be. I wish to be a great protector. Even if it means giving my life to save another's, so be it." The boy finished with a serious tone that caught the Headmaster's attention.

"Bold words for someone of your age." The Headmaster continued to search the boy for a sign that the teenager was unsure of his last statement but found none.

"Very well then. If you wish to protect those whom cannot protect themselves then you have the heart of a true huntsman within you. I wish to formally accept your request to be accepted into this year's entry class of Beacon Academy. Congratulations young man." He saw both grey haired men give a small smile and the bulky man pushed his papers across the table with the word approved stamped across his file in big red letters.

"Thank you sir. I hope I can make you all proud to call me a student of yours." With that the young man gathered his file and stood to shake both of the men's hands.

"You are most welcome, now we have business to finish up. We will meet you again soon." With that the door to the room opened and a uniformed man ushered the teenage boy out of the room and shut the door behind him affectively leaving the two men to speak in secrecy.

"Ozpin, you know that boy was a shoe-in. Why did you run him through that gauntlet of questions?" Professor Port seemed slightly irritated with the Headmaster.

"My dear Peter, you know as well as I do that is standard procedure. Besides, I think you are slightly hurt that someone has finally shown that they can go toe-to-toe with you in the field of storytelling." The Headmaster replied with a smirk.

"Hmph, I will admit that boy's tale was quite enthralling. However, the Headmaster is rarely a part of the interview process. Why did you need to be here for this one?" Once again Port's left eyebrow was raised to emphasize his curiosity.

"I simply wanted to hear the boy's tale for myself." He waved his hand as he walked to the coffee pot in the corner of the room. Once filling his cup he continued his explanation.

"After all, its note every boy who gets his aura unlocked at such a young age…"

He paused.

"…By a fall maiden."

Port's gasp was audible despite the miniscule movements from his moustache.

"Yes Peter, the boy's mother was a fall maiden, and his aura seems to have the same power as the fall maiden. Curious is it not?"

"I must admit this changes things." Port confessed.

"Indeed. Add him to the list." Ozpin stated flatly.

"You mean?" Port began but was quickly cut off by Ozpin again.

"Yes, THAT list. Now I have a train to catch back to Beacon. I will see you in a few weeks Peter. Good luck with the rest of the interviews." With that the Headmaster strolled out of the room leaving a slightly stunned Professor Port alone in the room.

He walked over to the side of the room that held his briefcase and blunderbuss. He opened the briefcase and typed a code into his scroll to unlock it. He then accessed a secret file on the tablet device and scanned it. The file was titled "Promotion". To symbolize that as students they were only pawns in the upcoming game of strategy but if used correctly they could make it to the end of the board and become any more powerful piece that they desired. He then typed in the information and the boy's profile appeared on the screen. He then tapped the boy's profile and slid it into the file to add him to the desired list.

Glancing over the names the professor noticed that the boy made the third candidate in this group. The first name was an obvious choice, Pyrrha Nikos. She is a well known champion of Mistral and the proclaimed goddess of combat of her generation. The second name was a slightly surprising one, Ruby Rose. She is the daughter of Summer Rose and niece to Qrow Branwen. She is also noted to be a silver eyed warrior and that was reason enough for her to be on this list despite being two years younger than any of the other students in this age group. The boy made the third and currently final member of the group. His aura, semblance, and the circumstances of how he had his aura unlocked had given the Headmaster the information he needed to add him to the list. Before he closed the tablet to save his data the professor glanced over the name of the boy.

Fenix Fall.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: So I have a serious question for you guys. Do you prefer the shorter chapters I have so far published or would you prefer me to combine/lengthen them?

Also thanks so much for the reviews so far!

Chapter 4: Silent Attraction

'Ugh I'm never traveling coach again' thought Fenix. Fenix stepped off the walkway from the passenger ship that he had spent ten hours on. Getting from the edge of the border of Vacuo and Vale had been a tiring trip. Ten hours cramped in a passenger transport that had to make stops along the way. Of course when it made these stops they weren't even allowed to get off the ship. So stretching your legs to help relieve the feeling of claustrophobia that can only be felt when a hunk of cramped metal magically takes flight thousands of feet in the air was out of the question.

He rolled his shoulders and rotated his neck popping many joints in the process of hopefully releasing some of the tension built up from the flight. Apparently this motion made more noise than he thought because an elderly lady next to him looked over and gave him a slightly shocked expression. He just smiled to her and began making his way towards the baggage claim. Once there he waited for his bag to make its appearance. It was the third bag to emerge from the chute and he got many curious glances his way with the two swords strapped to the top of his bag. He decided to pay them no mind and started making his way to the exit. Since there was a weapons restriction in airports he was going to have to wait until he was outside to put his weapons on.

His swords were his pride and joy. He was a weapon's enthusiast to put it mildly. He enjoyed being a social person but he also enjoyed it when he could engage people in the discussion of their weapons. Especially those who had the skill to craft their own. He had forged the twins (his nickname for the pair) on his own after he had left the orphanage at age fourteen. Multiple upgrades had led to the finished product now lying before him in their sheaths. Of course they weren't just basic swords but he preferred to not show all their tricks unless necessary. He enjoyed showing them off but knew if he didn't want to get in trouble the day before his first day at Beacon Academy he better follow the rules. He calmly hoped he could show off his weapons fully to somebody who would truly appreciate the art of weapon's crafting at Beacon tomorrow. As he moved towards the exit he glanced down to admire twins in their entire sheathed splendor.

They were Langseax style long swords. They sat roughly three feet in length totally with the blade encompassing two and a half feet and the handle taking up only a half of a foot. One sided blades so that the entire edge side of the blade was sharp for cutting and slashing attacks. The back end of the blades were flat not meant for damaging attacks. Fenix preferred using this side of the blades for non lethal attacks. Primarily when he wanted to subdue or knock out his target instead of kill them. A concave dip ran the entirety of the flat section of the blades perfectly centered. An inlay of two white lines spiraling down the concave dip gave the blades an artistic feature. The tip of the blades were one sided as well facing the edge at a sharp angle. The design of the flat and tip sections of his blades allowed for stabbing motions to be more effective. A bizarre trait for his swords was the ammo clip on the front of each sword located along the hilt and base of his blades. The ammo clip on the left handed sword appeared much bulkier while the one on his right handed sword appeared more compact yet stuck out farther from the blade than the other one did. The hilt of his sword was simple. The cross guard that sat perpendicular to the blade separated the blade from the handle. This small metal section provided very little defensive abilities. The handle was a wooden one with a maple coloring to it. The pommel was a symmetrically angled one that allowed for bashing attacks that had the same purpose as the back end of the blades.

Once he moved outside he began gearing up. Of course the first thing he always did when he went out into the sun was flip his sunglasses (which he affectionately referred to as his "shades") down from their resting place on his forehead down to their more useful position of protecting his eyes. He strapped his dual swords on his back in an upside down 'X' formation with the hilts pointing towards the ground and the blades within their sheaths pointing upwards. He looked to check for the best mode of transportation into the city of Vale and found that there appeared to be a monorail that made stops throughout the city. With that he made his way and boarded the monorail.

The train car was well lit with how much sunlight the windows let through so he kept his shades on. The blaze colored lenses allowed for him to scan the car unknowing to the rest of the inhabitants. He noticed a few seats down and across the car a young dog eared Faunus boy was eying him. He figured the boy seeing a guy in a train with swords strapped to his back was the highlight of his day. So why not make it better? He lowered his shades so the boy could make eye contact and gave the boy a wink. With the boy's amusingly shocked expression that was topped off with his dog ears perking up, he raised his shades back and flashed the boy a smile. With the boy returning the smile he realized they had arrived at a stop at the end of the city so he figured this would be as good a spot as any to begin his exploration of Vale.

When he exited the monorail he quickly realized he was in the industrial area of Vale and took to looking around. Warehouses, factories, and office buildings made up the typical landscape of such a district within a major city. None really caught his eye except for a Schnee Dust Company distribution center that he made sure to note the exact location of. That would most likely be a hotspot for trouble, whether it be a Faunus rights protest or a gang trying to score a major dust supply. He moved down a few buildings and noticed the area began to look rougher. The buildings showed their age on this end of the district and even a few were abandoned. Near the end of the area he noticed a flash of color moving down the side of one of the clearly abandoned warehouses. A group of young teenagers were grouping up and moving quickly down an alley with what appeared to be improvised weapons in their hands. The kids looked to be up to no good with one in the front who Fenix concluded was the ring leader snickering to his followers. They sloppily formed their ranks and jogged around the corner of the alley. Fenix saw that in their haste the group of eight troublemakers had not noticed him standing on the sidewalk and he decided to investigate what they could be up to. He quickly tucked his bag behind a dumpster to avoid it being snatched by some passerby. As he came to the corner he heard the ringleader speak up.

"Give us all your money and jewelry bitch. Then maybe we will go easy on you." A few cocky chuckles came from the group around the corner. Fenix tensed up believing the group had cornered some poor young girl and were robbing her like some schoolyard bully would do to steal a smaller kid's lunch money. His anger boiled within him and he decided to teach these punks a lesson. The hard way.  
With a little added drama he turned the corner and loudly unsheathed his swords. The 'shwing' noise startled the group much to his delight. He then took in the entirety of the situation. Within a total of two seconds he noticed three things.

One, the group all had weapons drawn. The ring leader had a sledgehammer that he had taken from over his shoulder and assumed a defensive stance once Fenix made his presences known. The rest of the lot had smaller construction tools brandished but did not appear to have much experience in using them as weapons. Their arsenal ranged from hammers, to screwdrivers, to one girl having a portable power saw. He made sure to note that she should be dealt with first.

Two, the group had cornered a girl. The alley turned into a dead end about twenty five meters from where he currently stood and her back was against an unstable looking brick wall. The boy with the sledgehammer and the girl with the portable power saw stood in the front with the smaller weapon wielders behind them in a hastily thrown together attempt to form ranks. The sides of the group were lined by a brick wall on their left and the outside wall of the abandoned warehouse to their right. Effectively trapping them all in since the warehouse had no doors on this side. The aspiring gang's only means of escape was to go through Fenix. This part of his realization gave him an immense amount of twisted pleasure knowing he wasn't going to let any of them escape unharmed.

Third, and the part that quickly dismissed his thoughts of happily beating the crap out of the little punks, was that the girl was absolutely alluring. She had pink and brown multicolored hair that was perfectly split down the middle. The pink side had a few stylishly placed streaks of white in it. Her eyes were just as mysterious. The eye under the pink hair matched with a creamy pink color and the other matched the hair above it with a chocolaty color. She wore a white jacket that was trimmed with pink and also appeared to be entirely lined with the same shade of pink on the interior. She also had a set of black necklaces intertwining about her neck that seemed familiar to the boy for some reason. This thought was quickly discarded as he noticed the black corset that hugged her form nicely and curved up at the bottom to expose her hips. Sed hips showed her milky white skin tone that for some reason gave him goose bumps. Her pants were brown and held up by two belts. The larger belt hugged her right hip and dipped down on her left hip while the smaller belt hugged her left hip and dipped down on her right hip. Effectively making a wide 'X' with the belts on her lower mid section. Her boots appeared to have large heels to them but were also button up on the exterior side of the boots. He also noticed her petite frame. She was a beautiful woman but appeared to be under five feet tall in the height department. Her pose completely surprised him though. She was standing with one hip popped out and leaning on a white and pink parasol. She had a cocky grin on her face to show she was for some reason amused with the spectacle of eight teenagers trying to overpower her.

Then it clicked in his brain. She wanted them to attack her. She was more than prepared for this half-assed ambush. Maybe she was even enjoying the thought of punishing this pathetic excuse for a gang as much as he was a second ago. With that final thought the two seconds were up and he began his menacing taunt of the kids before him. He began to twirl his blades along his hands. Counter clock wise for two rotations, stop, then clockwise for two rotations again, stop, and then repeat.

"Children, wouldn't you find it unwise to corner a woman in this part of town?" He asked the question making sure his voice was laced with a taunting tone. The multicolored girl on the other side of the group quirked an eyebrow at him as if asking him to elaborate. A question to which he was more than willing to acknowledge.

"I mean it is obvious she knows how to defend herself. As a matter a fact, I would even go as far as to say she was hoping for a fight. Am I right milady?" With that question to her he stopped twirling his blades and grasped them in the backhand grip stance.

The lady in question shrugged her shoulders and momentarily closed her eyes to convey that he had possibly made a valid point. As she opened her eyes she met his fiery orange gaze and conceded a small smile to him. This was enough of a message for him to understand he had guessed correctly about her. She wanted this fight.

"Well then it would be terribly rude of me to let you have all the fun with this group of miscreants." He flipped his blades into the proper forehand grip. "Shall we?" He asked giving her a slight bow before assuming an attacking stance.

Her smile widened and she opened her parasol over her shoulder before giving a small curtsy.

"Well then, ladies first" Fenix quipped.

The beginning of the fight took a different turn than what he had anticipated. He expected her to attack the leader and his lieutenant since they were the closest to her. He would then handle the grunts closest to his end and it would be a quick victory. What he didn't expect, was for her to completely disappear from the battlefield. Fenix and his opponents were left dumbfounded. They were frozen in amazement that somebody could just vanish in front of their eyes as if it was a magic trick.

Fenix then thought, 'hmmmm, magic? A trick then.' He composed himself quicker than his opponents and began using his senses to see if he could gather any clues to her whereabouts. Sure enough he caught the distinct sound of heels clacking on the pavement. He zeroed in on the cloaked girl's location and found her to be approaching the blind side of the girl with the power saw. The unmistakable sound of a sword being unsheathed caused Fenix to spring into action. He took off in a dead sprint, making a bee line to intercept the invisible girl's assassination attempt of the gang member. The group, noticing his movement, began moving to get in his way. Swords versus hammers and other small tools was no problem. Easily dodging and parrying their attacks he quickly made it to his destination. The girl with the power saw didn't have the chance to rev it up. She pulled it up and swung it in a downward motion towards where Fenix's head was about to be. Fenix reacted by pulling up both blades. His left sword stopped the power saw in its tracks and his right one deflected a now visible thin blade attached to an umbrella handle. His deflection allowed his sword to trap the umbrella handle to the ground quickly while he made eye contact with its user.

"That's a bit overboard don't you think?" He raised one eyebrow to her with his question.

All she replied with was a shrug of her shoulders. He then released his hold on her weapon with his right sword and spun to block the sledgehammer coming for the side of her head. He blocked it but the force of the collision forced his sword back as well as the makeshift war hammer of the gang leader. Fenix looked over his shoulder to the multicolor eyed girl.

"Let's try this without killing? Ok?" His answer never came as the girl disappeared again. Leaving Fenix to fend off the group of eight attackers by himself.

"Count yourselves lucky kids." He brought his right sword up and bashed the girl with the power saw with the pommel of his sword. She fell unconscious to the pavement and her weapon clanked on the ground away from the group. In a fluid motion he spun and slashed with his left sword backwards. This move redirected the sledgehammer the leader had been swinging down on Fenix towards the ground to the attackers right handed side. His hands still glued to the weapon left him completely defenseless and Fenix took the dull back end of his right sword to strike the boy in his left side. He heard a crack that meant he probably broke a few ribs as the boy doubled over in pain. As the momentum of the boy doubling over brought his face downwards he was met with the pommel of Fenix's other sword coming up at his face. The impact made a loud thud as the boy left his feet for a second before falling on his back completely senseless.

Fenix turned to the rest of the group. They all appeared angry that two of their comrades had been beaten like that but they also didn't look anxious to receive the same treatment. Fenix pointed his right hand sword to the nearest opponent.

"Drop your weapons, take your wounded, and leave. While you still can." His eyes narrowed daring the rest of them to test his ability to thwart their attack. The group tensed but quickly obeyed his commands. Once the group fled the scene Fenix began to exit the alley way but stopped at the sound of applause from a single onlooker. He turned to see none other than to see the multi colored girl slow clapping while sitting on top of the brick wall behind where the battle had taken place. Sheathing his swords he rolled his right hand forward, tucked his left hand behind his back, and bowed a gentlemanly bow to his audience.

"Why thank you. Thank you. Do you wish for an encore?" He finished his bow and looked up to see her pondering his question with eyes cast towards the clouds and a finger on the side of her cheek. She then looked down to meet his gaze and enthusiastically nodded with a smile.

"Unfortunately it appears I have run out of willing participants so maybe another time. Would you please come down?" Fenix asked holding a hand towards her direction. She fake pouted but stood on top of the wall. A quick flash and she was no longer on the top of the wall but on the ground standing directly in front of Fenix.

"Whoa. Teleportation?" His question earned a quick nod from the girl as she crossed her arms and popped her hip to the side. "So is that your semblance?" His second question got a curious answer. The girl nodded and then stopped as if something was wrong. She then paused and shook her head. "So that's a yes and a no at the same time?" She seemed surprised he caught that and nodded yes enthusiastically. Fenix then struck an idea. "Sounds interesting. I have a proposition for you then." His statement earned a look of intrigue from the girl. "I'm new here. So I need someone to show me around the town. Since I rescued you would you do me the honor of escorting me through Vale and showing me what there is to do in this city?" His request got a raised eyebrow from the girl. He caught her meaning and chuckled. "Ok, I know you could have handled yourself but you made me do all the work here." With that the girl shrugged again and smiled to him. He offered his arm to her and she seemed to get a slight tint of pink on her cheeks as she took it and they walked arm in arm down the alley.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Coffee with a Hint of Red and Yellow

After getting his bag he was led to the river that split the city of Vale. The girl silently led him to a ferry and they crossed the bay to the commercial district of the city. Once there Fenix quickly found a coffee shop and suggested the two sit and talk for a bit. The girl nodded in approval and he led her to a small table that sat out front of the coffee shop's window. He set his bag down before walking to the opposite chair and motioned for the girl to sit in it. He took the chair for the girl and scooted it in for her after she had sat in it like a true gentleman should. He then took his seat across the small table from her as the waitress appeared. A blonde haired girl with blue eyes donning a red apron smiled to them and took their orders.

"Mocha frappuccino for me please." The waitress nodded and turned to the other member of the table. The multi colored girl looked intently at the small menu and then pointed to something. She turned the menu so the waitress could see her selection. The waitress nodded again and turned to go fill the order. Fenix took this as the time to start questioning his companion.

"So, what's your name?"

The girl looked at him and pulled out her scroll. She typed something into it and Fenix was a bit upset that the girl would rather text than answer his questions. He then realized what she was typing was meant for him as she turned her scroll to him so he could read what she wrote.

 **My name is Neopolitan, but I prefer to be called Neo. Yours?**

"Ah, Neo. I really like your name but you realize you misspelled Neapolitan right?"

She shot him a glare that made him feel like she was holding a dagger to his throat.

"So Its supposed to be spelled that way huh?"

She nodded and relaxed her death glare on him.

"Oh, mine is Fenix."

She typed on her scroll again and then showed her new message to him.

 **A pleasure to meet you Fenix.**

"A pleasure to meet you as well." Fenix paused for a moment and decided to go ahead and ask his next question. "So I may be touching on a sensitive subject, and if it is please don't feel obligated to answer, but why don't you… talk?" He hesitated with the last part of his question afraid he would offend her and effectively ruin their coffee date before it had barely started. Wait was this a date? As he thought about that question to himself Neo was typing up a storm on her scroll. She then got his attention and showed him her reply.

 **I'm a mute. Well rather mostly. I can still talk but it's very painful for me to do so. So I don't do it if it isn't completely necessary. And before you ask no I'd rather not say why I have difficulty speaking at the moment. You can't get all the answers from me on our first date ;).**

That last sentence completely caught Fenix off guard and his eyes shot open in surprise. "So this is a date then?"

 **Depends. Are you going to pay?**

"Of course. I asked you here after all. It would be terribly ungentlemanly of me to invite a cute girl to coffee and not pay for her." He finished with a wink. She rolled her eyes but smiled brightly at him.

 **Alright my turn for a question. How old are you? You look younger than me. I'd guess twenty.**

"You would be a tad over on that one. I'm actually eighteen." Fenix replied sheepishly after realizing she had to be at least three years older than himself. He had always seemed to have a thing for older women anyways but this was near the edge of any age gap he had ever had before. It made him slightly nervous for some weird reason. He noticed a surprised look on Neo's face as she typed again.

 **Wow. I'm twenty three. Don't have anything against cougars do you? ;)**

"Another winky face eh?" He laughed warmly at the obviousness of his statement. "And no, I have always actually liked older ladies. So now it's my turn for a question. Is that fair? You ask one then I ask one?" He received a small nod from her to signify her agreement.

He then began signing with his hands his next question. He asked her if she preferred to communicate using sign language or use her scroll. Her eyes shot wide open in her surprise. She signed her surprise and then replied stating she preferred her phone. It was a personal choice but it was nice to know she could communicate with somebody else this way. Apparently no one close to her could talk to her that way.

"Alright then, just know you can always use which ever method makes you most comfortable at the time. I know sign language is a bit quicker sometimes. Your turn for a question now." He nodded to her but they were interrupted by the waitress retuning with their order. She placed the mocha frappuccino in front of Fenix and then placed a plain looking coffee in front of Neo. As the waitress walked away Fenix caught Neo's eye and motioned with his head towards her drink. She understood the intended question and picked her scroll back up to revert to typing her answers again.

 **It's just a French vanilla. So why did you get a frapp?**

"Let's just say I'm a bit warm natured." He chuckled at his own joke and then remembered his intended purpose of having coffee with her in the first place. "So what's your full semblance? Back in the alley your yes and no answer got my attention. To make it fair, you show me yours and I'll show you mine." He waggled his eyebrows at her playfully with his last statement. Neo responded with a snort followed by silent laughter. She had to cover her mouth with her hand for fear of spraying Fenix with the coffee she had just drank as he asked his question.

 **Well that sounds fun ;). Ok so you see how my hair and eyes have two different colors?** Fenix nodded and she typed again. **Well its called heterchromia iridum. Surprisingly enough my semblance is the same. I have two. Care to take a guess at the one you don't know yet?**

"Well the teleportation one was pretty obvious. The other one… I'm gonna say cloaking?" Neo shook her head. "Then… manipulation?" She gave an intrigued look and he decided to elaborate. "You vanished into thin air right before my eyes. So it's either you can manipulate your surroundings to make it look like you aren't there. Or you can manipulate what other people see."

 **Ding ding ding we have a winner!**

"So which one is it then?" She held up two fingers to signify her answer. "Ah so you can actually make people see whatever you want?" She nodded and to prove her point Fenix noticed that there were now two Neos sitting across from him. He quickly blinked a few times to make sure his eyes weren't just messing with him. Nope, definitely two copies of the same cute girl were sitting across the table now. He noticed that one had Neo's normal eye and hair color patterns and the other had the reverse. He assumed the reverse one was a mirror image and grinned at his quick discovery of her tricks. "Oh I'm in heaven now." His quick wit caught Neo off guard. The two Neos began a silent fit of laughter which Fenix found absolutely adorable. When she turned her semblance off, the illusion in front of him shattered like glass leaving only the real Neo sitting where she had been the entire time. She then motioned with her hand for him to show her his semblance now.

"Basically I can create and manipulate fire to my will. I've gotten pretty good at using it in all sorts of situations due to some intense training in aura control." Fenix then held out his right hand to the side of the table. His eyes caught fire and an intense flame burst to life in his palm. Neo marveled at his ability but she did not seem as surprised at his hidden power as he had come to expect from people. To impress her a bit more he closed his right hand and made a lose fist. The flame within his fist flickered and seemed to grow in intensity until it all the sudden it relaxed. A gentle glow emanated from his fist and he relaxed his hand to let it fall open. Neo's eyes grew even larger at the sight of what was now in his hand. A butterfly made of fire was resting on Fenix's palm. It appeared to actually behave like a real one would with it slowly crawling up his arm and moving its wings to steady itself. Once the butterfly reached Fenix's shoulder, he turned his head to look at it, and it fluttered its wings. It released tiny flames from behind its wings as it started flying. It was a mesmerizing sight as the fire butterfly danced around the two of them for a few moments. Fenix then focused on the butterfly again and it flew to hover directly before Neo's face. She reached out to touch it but as she did she winced and drew her now burnt hand back from the pain. The butterfly evaporated before her and the fire in Fenix's eyes went out.

"Ya know it IS still fire. Not wise to touch." He chuckled as he held out his hand as an offering to inspect her now injured finger. She relented and put her hand in his. He drew it closer. After a quick examination he turned her hand to face the outer part of her hand towards his face. Neo realized only too late what he was doing as he gently placed his lips on her hand and kissed down on her knuckles. He focused the center of his kiss on her index finger since it was the one that had the burn on it. He released his lock on her hand and she pulled it back faster than she had intended to. He had obviously flustered her due to her flushed cheeks, wide eyes, and overall shocked demeanor.

"Don't worry it's only a small burn. First degree, so it may sting a little but it will be alright. Nothing a little aura can't fix. By the way it is your turn for a question." He then leaned back and began sipping on his frappuccino awaiting her question.

Neo's thoughts however were spinning. This boy had pulled some good moves on her so far. He was handsome, had unbelievably polite manors, a pleasant personality, and had shown he was at least a decent fighter. All traits she preferred in a guy. She quickly glanced down at the hand he had kissed to inspect it as if she expected something to be left there from the kiss itself. She had thought of a few questions but now that her train of thought had been derailed. She was grasping for anything to continue the conversation and save her from the continually extending awkward silence between them. She grabbed her scroll and fumbled to type a question to him.

 **So why are you in Vale?**

"I'm going to be attending Beacon Academy. We are supposed to arrive tomorrow but I wanted to come a day early so I could check out the city. So far I'm glad I did." He ended with a wide smile towards her. Neo's blush appeared to darken as she averted her eyes so he hopefully couldn't see her slightly embarrassed state. 'God he's smooth' she thought to herself. After a slight pause Fenix asked his question. "Speaking of hunter academies, did you attend one? You seem like you can handle your semblances well and you carry yourself like you know how to fight."

 **Yes. I attended Haven Academy and graduated two years ago. So students typically start at age seventeen. Why are you starting a year late?**

"Well I was actually planning to go sooner but some…stuff came up and I had to delay my entrance to the academy by a year. Here let's get going. I need to find a hotel so I can drop this bag off without having to lug it around all day." With that Fenix got up and went to the counter inside the shop to pay the bill. They paid and walked to a nice hotel closest to the airport for the trip to Beacon tomorrow. Fenix got his room and unloaded his stuff minus his precious swords. Neo then had the idea to take him to the shopping center of the city so Fenix could look to see what was offered.

They only had a short time to go browse the shopping center but Neo made sure to hit the essential shops before they closed for the day. Between fighting a teenaged gang, getting coffee, and walking the streets of the city, it was late in the evening when they even got to the shops. She showed him the weapon supply shops, ammunition stores, and a few clothing stores. She also got to show him her favorite dust shop named From Dust Till Dawn. Her uncle Roman (uncle being a strictly honorary title seeing as how they weren't really related but Roman looked after her like family so she adopted to calling him uncle) had robbed the place a few times since they were stockpiling dust munitions. Neo always felt bad for the shopkeeper so she tried to help support the man by shopping there frequently. When they arrived today the place was under reconstruction due to one of her uncle's thefts being thwarted by some red hooded vigilante girl.

After visiting the dust shop the duo noticed that the sun was going down signaling the time for them to part ways was fast approaching. Fenix knew he didn't want this time with her to end. He had only spent the majority of one day with this girl but he felt a connection with her. Her silent joking with him, sarcastic yet sweet nature, and maturity were all attributes he had noticed over the day. They all seemed to pull him into wanting to be around her more. He knew he had only figured out a few details about her and that there was much more to her than she was letting on. To dig deeper and truly get to know this girl was going to take time. Instead of this discouraging him, he found himself feeling elated at the thought of spending more time around her.

Neo was feeling the same about the fire wielder. She hadn't exactly spilled all her secrets to him about her speckled past but she felt she could be more honest around him than most of her co-workers. Sure they were nice but they didn't have the same friendly comradery with her that Fenix had already built with her. The funny thing was that he didn't seem to be doing anything special to gain her trust. He was just open and friendly with her. She was used to people in her line of work giving her a false sense of friendship that really only amounted to acquaintances who sometimes did some dirty work together. She concluded that Fenix was somebody she wanted to understand more. There are so few truly good people in this world and it seemed like she had stumbled upon one today.

They stood there awkwardly in their own thoughts. For a few uncomfortable moments neither could think of what to say to the other. Both seemed to be searching for some way to extend their time together. All of the sudden Fenix brightened up, took one step forward towards Neo, and stood up straight with his hands behind his back. Neo arched an eyebrow knowing he was up to something. Fenix then offered his left arm to her.

"Milady? May I escort you home?" She rolled her eyes but smiled and took his arm. He loved how she was always rolling her eyes at him. It never seemed out of annoyance but more out of playful appreciation. She quickly typed with her free hand and then shoved her scroll in his face.

 **You are so old school you know that right?**

"I prefer the term traditional" he replied. She just shrugged in acceptance of his self-labeling.

They walked into the evening arm in arm down the streets continuing to enjoy each other's company. It was obvious that they enjoyed the closer proximity to each other. Neo's blush had resurfaced and Fenix made the mistake of pointing it out to her. This led to Neo attempting to push him into a light pole or street sign anytime they got near one. Fenix was for the most part able to avoid her attempts to embarrass him. She succeeded a few times which caused Fenix to playfully retaliate. He used his superior height and strength to manipulate her movements causing her to sway back and forth. After enough jostling each other about they continued their stroll with small talk. Their arms never left their intertwined state through the entire trip. She led him towards a large building that appeared to house a nightclub inside of it. As they neared the building Neo began to slow her pace. Fenix turned to look at her and noted the sadness on her face. She gave a halfhearted smile and began to make her way towards the club. Before she could completely release her arm from his, he pulled her back and turned her so she was facing him. During this move his arm had slide from hers but to insure she didn't get away he held her hand. Neo was blushing again and he took a moment to absorb how adorable she looked before he began.

"I have two more questions for you." He kind of rushed his reasoning to her not completely sure of what the second question was. Ok, he knew what it was. He just had to think of a good way to ask it. That wasn't what was worrying him though. It was the serious nature of the other question he had for her. It had been nagging at him since he had first met her in that alleyway. However, that wasn't exactly a question to just blurt out either. He noticed he had been inner monologuing and she was giving him a 'well are you gonna ask or not' look.

"Actually it's a few more than that." With that he received her signature eye roll accompanied with her taking her hand from his. She then put her hands on her hips and popped it to the side. She had the body language to show she was a little annoyed with the wanting to ask more questions about her now but she wasn't leaving. That showed Fenix that she was willing to tolerate him a little bit more.

"Ok. Well first off, you live in a club?"

 **I live in an apartment above the club. It's not much, but it's nice.**

"Neat. Ok second question. Well… uh-" He never got it out as a loud explosion rocked the club they were standing in front of. The entire upper level's windows shattered simultaneously as the explosion emitted flames. A fraction of a second after that, an object was thrown from the building and landed down the street from them. After a brief moment to recover from the initial shock, Fenix and Neo both noticed the object was a man. He was dressed in a black suite without the coat, a white long-sleeved dress shirt underneath the black vest, and a red tie. He was unconscious and lying sprawled out on his back. Then a figure jumped from the window the man had been thrown from.

It was a blonde haired girl. She had A LOT of hair and he could swear it was glowing when she had first landed. But that wasn't the part that caught Fenix's eyes. She had huge… gauntlets on her arms. He figured they were some sort of modified weapons. What with what he thought looked to be shotgun shells incased in the gauntlets. She was also dressed rather revealing so as to show off her womanly figure very well. A mixture of brown, yellow, orange, and a hint of purple combined to make her outfit's color scheme. Before he began checking her out fully, he shook his head so to focus his mind.

She looked to be angry at the man. Fenix could only assume the man had flirted with the wrong girl and gotten what he deserved. How dare women defend themselves right? He internally laughed at his little joke at the poor bastard's expense. He was then caught off guard by a high pitched voice.

"Yang? Is that you?" Fenix turned his attention to the small black haired girl standing above the unconscious man. She had the whole gothic look going on except for a red cape that she had hanging off of her shoulders and a red frilly skirt.

"Oh! Hey sis!" The blonde greeted the small girl with a wide smile. Now that he knew they were sisters he noticed that they looked nothing alike. He shrugged it off remembering how different in appearance he and his own sister had been when she was still alive. The thought brought him some grief but he brushed it aside with the happy reunion that was occurring right in front of them. Speaking of them, he turned to look at his own companion. She was just watching the whole event unfold before them with her mouth hanging slightly open in surprise. He was going to make sure she was ok but then was brought back to the conversation of the two girls.

"What're you doing here?" The petite black haired girl then put her hands on her hip as if to chastise her sister. He assumed she was the younger sister but taking the motherly stance in this instance. It would have been funny to him had it not been a direct result of a grown man getting his ass handed to him by what appeared to be a teenage girl. To his surprise he noticed the older sibling look down in defeat and slump her shoulders.

"It's a long story" she muttered. Fenix barely heard it. For some reason that was enough of an answer for the caped girl. He was thinking of what to do next but then the sound of incoming police sirens rang in his ears. The two sisters in unison scurried away towards a yellow motorcycle and quickly sped away in the opposite direction of the sirens.

"Nooooooooooope!" He halfway yelled upward slurring the o's and accenting the p with a pop. As the sisters made their escape Fenix took that as their queue to do the same. He grabbed Neo by the arm and started dragging her away from the scene.

"We need to get out of here." His voice left no room for complaints as he led her away from the scene so as to avoid the girls and the police at the same time. He took to the lesser populated streets and even the alleys if need be to avoid anybody seeing them fleeing the scene. Once they got out of immediate danger Neo tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned to realize he was still half dragging her by her arm. With a jump he let her go so she could compose herself and he could explain himself.

"Look we needed to get out of there. I'm sorry I pretty much hauled you halfway across town but I didn't want to risk the police finding us there. Kind of don't want a run in with the police in which I could possibly be accused of beating up that man to be on my record. Especially because 'A' I didn't do it and 'B' it may look bad the day before my first day at Beacon." He cut off his rambling asking her if that made sense to her. She responded with an understanding nod, grinning at how flustered he was. Then suddenly his embarrassed state was replaced by a confident one. Complete with a cocky smirk and flicker of his fiery eyes.

"So, since the police will most likely be sealing that club off as a crime scene, I have an idea where you can sleep tonight." Her eyes widened at both the realization he was correct regarding the police. Her shock deepened a moment later when she further understand what he was implying about where she would be sleeping tonight. Gathering her thoughts before they went into the gutter she gave him a stern look and began to type into her scroll with a fury.

 **I don't put out on the first date**

"Aww such a buzzkill." With that Fenix brought a hand up to his cover the laughter that threatened to escape his mouth. He had a difficult time stifling himself and thought he had it under control. Until he looked back at Neo to see her looking both offended and surprised at his laughter at the same time. He then lost it and began an uncontrollable fit of loud laughter. His laughter was cut off after he heard her unsheathe her sword from her parasol. He then felt the cold steel touch his neck.

"Hold up!" He held up his hands in surrender. He got his laughter back under control and ended it with a loud cough to clear his throat. She hadn't lowered the sword from its threatening position yet. "I wasn't making fun of you or insinuating anything. It was just a joke and I'm sorry if it offended you." Neo held the blade there for a bit longer as if expecting more of an apology. Fenix then thought maybe he needed to sweeten the pot to save his neck, literally.

"How about this? You can stay in my room at the hotel with me. I'll take the chair and you can have the bed. Deal?"

She pondered his offer for a brief minute. Then the sword was removed from Fenix's neck and returned to its sheath. She then motioned to her outfit with both hands.

"I'm sure I have a shirt and pair of shorts you could borrow for one night." He then extended his arm to her again hoping she would accept his peace offering. This time she gave an annoyed look at him and brushed past him as she started walking towards the hotel. He caught up to her and the two walked in silence to their destination.

 **Alright one more chapter of character building before we actually get to Beacon! Fenix is going to be reunited with an old friend of his in chapter 7. Can you take a guess who it is? Also thanks for the follows/favorites/reviews! They seriously help drive me to pump these chapters out quicker!**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Tension in the Room

They arrived at their destination as the dark of night was finally settling in. Walking in to the room Fenix noticed a familiar sharp pain in his gut. In all the excitement of today, he had forgotten to eat anything. Closing the door behind him and turning on the lights Fenix got ready to ask Neo if she was hungry as well. A loud noise that sounded like a Beowulf's growl mixed with the rumble of an earthquake pierced the silence of the room. The petite girl hugged her midsection in an attempt to muffle the noise. She was clearly embarrassed but the sound of Fenix's attempts to muffle his laughter broke the silence of the room again. He decided to save his neck before she threatened him this time.

"That was adorable. Also…" he stopped mid sentence to walk past her and reach for a small pamphlet sitting on the hotel room desk. He glanced through it until he found what he was looking for. Holding the pamphlet open to a certain page, he handed it to her and finished his question.

"What would you like? We have room service, fast food, Chinese food, or pizza as our options." He left her to look over her options as he walked over to his bag to find her a pair of makeshift pajamas for the night. He then noticed an issue due to his personal choice of wardrobe.

"So, uh, slight problem here. I either have button up dress shirts, sleeveless shirts, or skin tight athletic shirts."

She gave him a look of 'are you serious?'

"Hey wielder of the flame here" he said with a joking tone while pointing to himself with both thumbs. "Kind of have a permanent high body temperature. So I have to compensate with wearing less layers of clothing. Don't get too excited." A playful smirk crept onto his face. Neo calmly went for her scroll and typed in her response.

 **You are going to have to do better than that to get me excited ;)**

"Oh I know, and I'm prepared to turn up the heat before the night is over."

 **Oh my God you make puns too? Marry me.** Her sarcastic look said otherwise but he understood it for what it was. The joke had amused her enough for her to not be so mad at him for his poorly timed innuendo earlier.

"I don't know. Do you think you can handle being treated like a queen the rest of your life?"

His response to her not-proposal caught her off guard. She decided to get off this topic before he flustered her anymore. She admittedly found it curious how he was able to have that affect on her with what appeared to be such ease on his end. She pointed to her choice in the pamphlet in an attempt to slow the continually growing pink of her cheeks.

"Ah so pizza is your choice for this evening?" He asked with a slightly French accent in his voice.

She nodded.

"The lady's preferred toppings?"

 **Pepperoni, Mushrooms, and Bacon.**

Fenix's jaw dropped. "Marry me."

 **I don't know. Would it be wise to turn the jester into the king?**

"Touche milady." He thought of what he could do to get back at her but decided best not to test his luck. She was basking in the glow of her small victory as he decided to get a move on with the evening.

"Ok so skin tight shirt with shorts or white dress shirt? Either way it's going to show off your, umm, womanliness." He tried not to act as embarrassed as he felt but it wasn't working. Too many pleasant images of what she might look like in either outfit flooded his mind.

Neo to her own amusement decided to play with the boy who had acted so gentlemanly so far. Throughout the day he had been winning the unspoken battle of who could make who blush the most. She decided to use the rest of this situation they found themselves in to her advantage and exact a little revenge.

 **Dress shirt.**

"Ok well I have this blue one." He pulled out a cobalt blue shirt to show off to her. She shook her head in disapproval.

 **Not my color scheme.**

"Ah, well only other one I have is, uh, white." He blushed again realizing what that would entail.

 **Perfect!**

She grabbed it from him as he pulled it out of his bag. Throwing it over her shoulder she walked to the bathroom making sure to swing her hips a little extra. As she reached the bathroom door she turned her head to give him a sly look and wink. She quickly slipped into the bathroom and shut the door.

Fenix sat there completely stunned from her sudden change in attitude towards him. The whole walk here she had acted upset with him and no matter how hard he tried to apologize she still wouldn't accept it. Then as soon as they got to the room she began flirting hardcore with him. To make it worse he was pretty sure she was teasing him on purpose. Well two can play at that game he thought to himself. He began hatching his plan to fire back at her flirty mood as he dialed the number to the pizza place to place their order. 'Pizza shack huh? Original name' he thought to himself with an extremely sarcastic tone.

After he had placed the order he sat down on the chair to turn on the TV. As he did he heard the shower start up in the bathroom. This was followed shortly by a ping from his scroll. He looked to see Neo had sent him a message.

 **No peaking ;)**

"Oh she is good" he laughed out loud to himself. Then he realized he had missed something from earlier.

She didn't lock the door when she went in.

'Oh testing me is she? Well as nice as that sounds, I'm sure it's a setup. Just going to have to wait out here until I get my chance at the shower.' His thoughts were attempting to run wild with thoughts of what could happen if he decided to join in for her shower. You know, to conserve water. Purely eco-friendly intentions here.

After awhile she emerged from the bathroom. Her multicolored hair was up in a towel but that's not what had Fenix's attention. His shirt covered her well enough. The sleeves were rolled up to her forearms so her hands wouldn't be swallowed by them. It stopped just above her knees in length so that wasn't the problem. It wasn't even how she had left a few buttons at the top undone so to show a little cleavage. It was the fact that the shirt was slightly see through. Her pink bra and underwear were completely visible through the white shirt.

His jaw hit the floor at the heavenly sight before him. She was already good looking but something about a girl wearing a guy's shirt just raises certain feelings of pride and attraction within him. Fenix was no exception to this flaw of the male gender as he sat there completely immobilized by how good she looked.

"Uh… wow. You look; well the term fantastic doesn't do you justice."

She beamed a smile in appreciation of his compliment. She knew it was going to get his attention but his not demeaning remark was a nice gesture. Of course also seeing the look of pure desire in his eyes while he simultaneously attempted to keep his composure was satisfying as well.

"I need to take a shower!" He slurred his words together as he ran into the bathroom. Neo didn't have enough time to be shocked as the door immediately re-opened. Fenix ran to his bag grabbed a pair of shorts and disappeared back into the bathroom. As she attempted to bask in the feeling of another victory in their battle of flattery, the door creaked open again.

"Just a heads up the pizza guy should be here in about twenty minutes. If I'm not out by then just get the money out of my wallet. It's over on the desk." With that he slammed the door shut and the noticeable clicking noise of the door being locked rang through the room.

Neo reveled in her victory by lying on the bed and switching the TV to a channel more her liking. She found the local news station as the nightly news had just begun. She sunk into the pillows and waited for the coverage of the story of the day. Sure enough they quickly dove into the juicy story with a title she felt was rather poorly done.

'White Fang Attack Schnee Distribution Center' was the headline.

Not to brag but she didn't think the heist was all that difficult. She got in easily, dispatching the security guards with little difficulty and avoiding the cameras. She then stole the Schnee dust shipment manifests for the next month from the office. On her way out she made sure to grab as much of the precious dust powder and crystals as she could. The sprinkles on top of her magnificent crime sundae were the pieces of evidence she planted to make it appear that the White Fang were the ones responsible for the crime.

From the news report it appeared her ruse was successful. The police were looking for anyone who knew anything about the crime to contact them. Likely because she knew that their search through the security camera footage would come up empty. She just hoped that the group of teenagers didn't put two and two together and contact the authorities. They hadn't seen anything but they approached her as soon as she had made the drop at the designated spot in a hidden compartment in the alley. She had her semblance activated so nobody could see her carrying two large duffle bags with the Schnee logo on them.

As the report ended she heard the door open and turned to gaze upon a sight to behold. Fenix had emerged from the bathroom donning nothing but a pair of bright orange sport shorts and a towel around his shoulders.

His physique was very attractive for someone just barely reaching adulthood. A tan complexion graced his skin evenly with no fading in the typical areas. He had a lean yet fit muscle tone to his body. This included nicely accented abs, tone biceps, and nicely developed pectorals gave him an athletic appearance. At this realization she realized she had sat up straight to help her study him more intently.

What caught her eye wasn't his incredibly attractive appearance. Although she really liked what she was observing on that topic. It was the sight of his crest tattooed onto his left pectoral over where his heart would be. It was located right at the same place where it was on his shirt. However, the tattoo was different compared to the plain blue like it was on his shirt. The color scheme of his tattoo followed his attire but it split so that one side of the hollow flame heart was orange and the other side was blue.

This was a problem for Neo. Not only was he physically very attractive but she also had a weakness for guys with tattoos. Something told her his tattoo seemed to have a sort of hidden meaning to it. Not many huntsmen that she had ever encountered had a hollow crest. The very few that she had run across that did often had some meaning for it. She then noticed the look he was giving her. She realized she had been staring at him with her jaw wide open. In an attempt to regain her composure she meekly pointed at the logo etched into his chest.

"Oh this?" He asked pointing to his crest to which Neo could only nod. "This is my personal coat of arms."

She then used sign language to ask him if it had meaning to him.

"Oh, well yes of course. I don't think there is a hunter or huntress alive whose crest doesn't symbolize something important to them in some way."

Using sign language once again she asked him what exactly the meaning was. He pondered his answer for a little bit before shrugging.

"It's honestly something that I would prefer to show you some day. I could explain it somewhat but I feel showing people for themselves seems to answer the question much more clearly."

She seemed to reluctantly accept that answer but made sure to make a mental note to hold him to that. She was genuinely curious about him at this point. He had been so open up to this point but the sudden secrecy of something that obviously had a significant meaning in his life intrigued her.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door and Fenix grabbing his wallet to answer the door. He paid for the pizza and then placed the food on the bed in front of her. He then grabbed a soda from the mini fridge for her and himself. They sat in comfortable silence with each other enjoying their meal. Once they had devoured the entire pizza he cleaned up the trash and returned to sit on the bed. He turned off the TV with the remote and then situated himself to face her. She noticed a serious look on his face and straightened herself into a similar sitting position across the bed from him.

"Neo this has been picking at my brain since I first met you. I understand if you don't want to answer this but I would really like to know. I won't think less of you in any way here but I want the truth." He paused and she was slightly caught off guard by his somber tone. She couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with how grave he seemed about whatever was bothering him. After a quick sigh he continued.

"Have you ever killed anyone?"

Needless to say she was caught off guard by that question. She didn't know what she was expecting it to be but it definitely wasn't that. As if catching her confusion he elaborated.

"It's just back in the alleyway I had to stop you from killing that girl. You were going to run her through. You weren't even going to give her a chance to defend herself. I saw the look in your eyes when I had to interfere. I have my own conclusion from past experiences in seeing that look in my previous mentor, but I need to hear your answer directly from you. So I'll ask again. Have you ever killed somebody before?"

She nodded

He bit his lip to stop himself from saying something rash. He didn't want to ruin the moment and cause her to shut him out because he was not pleased with her answer. She had answered a bit too quickly for his liking. Realizing that he didn't need to let the silence between them linger he decided to press forward.

"Me too."

This revelation sent Neo into an even deeper state of shock. This boy who hadn't even participated in his first day of hunter training just admitted that he too had taken a life. He seemed like such a good person though. The opposite of what she viewed herself as. He definitely didn't come across as a killer.

"It was always reluctant." Fenix felt the need to explain himself every time this topic came up. He didn't know exactly why but it felt like he was defending his honor that was somehow tarnished at his admitting to having to kill another person before.

"That is I never wanted to. I grew up with no family. Was in the family care services for a long time because nobody wanted a kid who could potentially burn their house down at any moment. Plus the orphanage I was basically raised at for eight years was in a village in the borderlands. Even at a young age I was used as the main source of protection for the village. Mainly I had to help the local militia handle Grimm attacks, but as I'm sure you have heard the outskirts are not a forgiving place. My first encounter with a group of marauders was at age nine. Long story short, to stop them from killing the townspeople I had to basically incinerate the entire band of outlaws. I knew it had to be done but that didn't make my first kill any easier. Eventually I accepted it as a necessary evil that I had to shoulder for the greater good. All the lives I have ever had to take were either in self defense or out of necessity to protect the innocent. It sounds cliché but it's the honest to dust truth. Now the reason I told you all that is that I want to know something from you."

"Why? Why were you going to kill that girl in the alleyway? Why were you going to kill a kid who you could have easily handled with less lethal force?"

The intensity of his story was immobilizing to Neo. He spoke with such calm ferocity about his past and seemingly unbeknownst to him when he asked her why his eyes had caught fire. They only stayed lit for a moment but it was enough to get the message across. Her explanation was important to him. He genuinely wanted to know if her intentions were pure or evil when it came to taking a life. She realized most people would hesitate to kill, but she wasn't most people. She had been trained from the beginning to not shy away from what had to be done. Kill without regret, and never give your opponent the chance to take the advantage over you. For if you do they will not show you the same mercy. Truth be told she never questioned it either. She had felt remorse at first when she was forced to kill but now that feeling was numbed. With the sheer amount of times she had been used as the angel of death's blade she was accustomed to it now. She felt no pain, no sorrow, and even some thrill from it. For that was what she was now, a finely tuned instrument of death.

Her bloodlust had always been a topic of issue during her training at Haven. Her professors never liked to encourage her violent tendencies and scolded her often for it. His approach was different though. The teachers at Haven had never asked her why she felt the need to fight the way she did. They just told her it was bad and needed to be fixed.

Yet here was this young man making her rethink her stance on this subject. Fenix was diving into the source of her fighting style after barely witnessing it. How the hell was this amateur attempt getting to her when professionals couldn't make her rethink her ways? Now she found herself asking herself why she felt that was the best course of action against the young gang in the alleyway. She thought on this for a short period of time before she pulled her scroll up to type her answer.

 **To be honest it was just second nature to me. I didn't think about why. I just did. Now that you explain yourself to me sure it seems like I was a bit too quick to rush to that conclusion. That is how I was raised. How I was trained from day one. To show no mercy because none will be shown to you. To act upon instinct and not let yourself be slowed down by thinking of possible outcomes or consequences, but rather dealing with them once it is over.**

He just stared at her scroll. Wide eyes did not move from the device until he slowly looked up at her and moved to hand her device back to her. His look of complete surprise left his flickering eyes staring into hers for an uncomfortable amount of time. When she had had enough of it she waved her hand in front of his face to try and break his trance. She was successful, earning a sudden gasp from him and looking like he didn't realize he had been staring at her the whole time.

"I'm sorry. It's just that one of my combat trainers said something exactly like that. Like word for word exactly like that. Just weird how much deja vu that gave me."

 **Well it's pretty sound advice wouldn't you say? Trust your instincts and not overthink things in the middle of a fight?**

"I mean sure it make sense at first but you have to look deeper at it. I'm wanting to be a hunter to help save people. What good would I be as a hunter who doesn't care about collateral damage? You have to always be aware in a fight. Not only for yourself but for your comrades, civilians, heck even your enemies. It may be just my point of view, but I wouldn't want any more people to be hurt or possibly die in my line of duty if I could help it."

 **I see where you are coming from but you have to understand casualties are going to happen. It's just part of the job.**

"I know and understand that. Doesn't mean I have to like it."

Another long awkward silence that consisted of each party staring at the other one enveloped the room. Both of them were hoping the other would find something to say so the uneasy situation would dissipate. Finally Fenix broke and spoke up.

"Look, uh, lets agree to disagree on this one ok? It's obvious you have more experience in this subject while I'm more of an aspirant. So how about we change the subject?"

Neo nodded and gave a 'yes please' look. She then typed in her scroll to start the new tangent conversation off.

 **What do you think of me?**

"Uh…What?"

Neo rolled her eyes and typed again.

 **What do you think of me? Now that you know a little bit about me I'm curious if has changed since our little coffee break.**

"Well I'll admit I may not completely agree with your attitude towards priorities during a fight."

Neo began kicking herself mentally. Of course that was going to be an issue. It had always been a hang up point with all of her associates outside of a few people she worked with/for and a few of her previous trainers. She just wanted somebody to look past that for once. It was her style, her choice, why should it bother them that much? Come to think of it why was she finding what he thought of her to matter again?

Before she could start on that thought process he put his hand on her chin to turn her attention to him. Her eyes met the fiery gaze and she found herself getting lost in his eyes. Those bright glowing orbs seemed to penetrate her soul. She couldn't help but wish that maybe he saw something in her that nobody else saw. What that was exactly she wasn't sure of at the moment though. He snapped her attention back to reality when he removed his hand from her chin and began caressing her cheek.

"As I was saying, you and I may not see eye to eye on a few things, but it's only been one day. We just met this morning and look I already have you in my bed."

Neo snorted and slapped his hand away from her face with one hand while shoving him off the bed with her other one. He landed gracefully on his knees though, as he pulled a backwards roll while tumbling off the bed. He smiled at her and she couldn't help but grin back.

"Sorry, but I had to lighten the mood. Anyways as I was saying it's only been one day. I haven't learned all that much about you but what I do know about you I like." With that he winked at her and began moving towards the chair.

He stopped at his bag and reached in to pull out a silver colored metallic briefcase. He set it down on the table next to the chair he would be sleeping in tonight. This caught Neo's attention as she sat up straight in the bed again to get a better view of what the contents of the case could be. He entered a code into the electronic lock and popped the clasps open to unlock the lid. As the lid was raised Neo felt the anticipation growing since she still couldn't see what was in the briefcase from her current angle. Silently cursing her small stature she waited as patiently as she could for him to unveil the treasure.

He withdrew a pair of wrist gauntlets. Well they really looked like thin wrist pads that children learning to roller blade would wear. As he began putting them on and tightening them so they would fit properly she noticed the Schnee symbol on the posterior side of the gauntlets. They also appeared to have a small remote embedded into the material of the gauntlets and that further piqued her curiosity.

After Fenix had secured the wrist gauntlets, he turned to notice Neo staring at them with interest. More importantly he noticed her gaze focusing on the Schnee family crest and the dials on the device.

"Aura inhibitors." He answered her unspoken question. She tilted her head to the side to ask for further clarification and he complied.

"They help restrict how much aura one can put out. I use it to sleep more soundly without risking burning the building down. Long story short at a young age I almost burnt down the orphanage I was at when I had a bad dream. I got an older version of these thanks to the Schnee family so everybody could sleep without risking their lives around me. A few years ago I upgraded to this pair. Fun fact, this newer pair can also be used for training purposes as well." To emphasize his point he typed into the remote on the right gauntlet.

She watched as he somehow seemed to dim. She hadn't noticed it before but now it made his normal appearance to give off the look that he somehow lightly glowed. She glanced at the remote and noticed the small screen showed five percent as the indicator. So he couldn't get a decent night's sleep unless he had his aura turned down dangerously low? 'How much aura does this kid have?' she thought to herself.

"I think we could use some rest though. Foiling a young teenage gang's attempt to rob a beautiful young lady, escorting her through the city, and then avoiding the police with her, it has been a full day for me." As he gathered his makeshift bedding and settled in he noticed Neo was getting comfortable on the bed. He also noticed she positioned her parasol on the side of the bed where she could get to it easily.

"Don't trust me huh?" He nodded towards her weapon to explain his question. All she did was smirk and shrug. Fenix killed the lights and began settling in. As he got comfortable he began reflecting on the events of the day only to have his thoughts interrupted by something hitting him in the face. He grabbed it and found it to be something wiry yet padded. It also felt… lacy?

Wait.

He flicked his scroll on to use as a flashlight to check if his suspicions were correct. Sure enough, he found himself holding a pink lacy bra.

"Oh it is not nice to tease." He said with a sultry voice but flicked his scroll off so he could exact his plan of revenge. He threw his covers off noisily so she could hear that he had done just that. He then stealthily grabbed his bag and located his desired object. He shuffled a little in his chair to make it sound like he was doing something and then threw the object where Neo's head had been.

Neo, feeling proud of her little game she had played with Fenix, had her internal victory celebration interrupted by something hitting her in the back of the head. She grabbed at the object and noticed it felt like another object of clothing. It wasn't her bra so he wasn't just returning that to her so easily. After feeling the object for a few moments she concluded it was a pair of sport shorts. Then her eyes shot open as she realized all he was wearing for pajamas tonight was a pair of sport shorts.

Neo quickly spun around while simultaneously grabbing her own scroll to unlock it. The light shone on Fenix to reveal his blanket was thrown to the side. He was still in the same sport shorts he had gone to bed originally in and grinning from ear to ear.

"Couldn't resist could you?" He teased.

She quickly spun back around, threw her bedding over herself, and turned her scroll off to hide in the dark. She was blushing furiously from embarrassment as well as a little annoyance he had played her so easily.

"Good night sweet thing." He chuckled as he covered himself back up and slowly began drifting off to sleep.

He couldn't see it but his response from her was a hand raised as high as it could, presenting a single finger in a provocative manor.

Fenix woke up the next morning feeling a tad cramped in his chair. There was a pressure on his left side. He opened his eyes and to his surprise found Neo cuddling up to him. She was hugging him from the side and had her left leg slightly draped over his stomach. He flushed a crimson red at the compromising situation he had just found himself in. He sat there caressing her shoulder, pondering how he missed her crawling in with him or why she had left the comfort of her own bed in the first place.

After a bit he realized he had only two hours until he needed to be at the docks to catch the airship to Beacon. He somehow managed to wriggle his way out from under the petite girl without disturbing her sleep. He covered her back up with his blanket and sent a small flicker of aura into her to warm her up. She smiled and snuggle further into the blanket. He smiled in contentment at her adorable persona. He then removed the aura inhibitors from his arms, placing them in the briefcase and locking it. He threw a shirt on and made his way out of the room to go grab himself and his guest some breakfast.

While he was gone Neo woke up noticing she was in the chair and alone. She searched the room for her source of warmth but noticed he was gone. She assumed he had left and began to get frustrated. In her angered state she was completely oblivious to his bag and other belongings still strewn about the room.

'Maybe she had scared him off? She had only joined him in the chair because she was naturally cold. Even at five percent aura he was still amazingly warm. In the middle of the night she woke up shivering so she decided to cuddle up to him. She was not disappointed and slept soundly through the rest of the night.'

The more she thought about it the more she got angry. She grabbed her parasol and quickly impaled the pillow on the bed out of fury. She continued to assault the pillows of the room with a vengeance until the sound of the door closing behind her caught her attention.

Fenix returned to a small warzone in his room. The shreds of pillowcases and feathers littered the floor in the aftermath of the pink and brown colored girl's war on the room's furnishings. She was on her knees on the bed still holding her parasol that was currently embedded in the last remaining pillow in the room. Her head was turned over her right shoulder staring at him with wide eyes in embarrassment at him finding her in this situation. She withdrew her weapon from her most recent victim and put it down. She turned to him looking completely flustered as she tried to find a way to explain herself to him. Something caught Fenix's attention and he immediately averted his eyes from her. He set the covered tray down and walked over to the chair. Not even looking in her direction the entire way.

"You might want to at least put this on." He held up her bra that she had tossed at him the night before. She looked down and noticed she had forgotten the white shirt was slightly see through. She blushed so hard she felt her entire body turn red as she grabbed the article of clothing from him and ran to the bathroom to put it on.

When she returned from the bathroom she noticed he had uncovered the tray revealing a wide variety of breakfast foods. She made herself a plate and joined him on the bed watching the news. The same report of the Schnee distribution center robbery was playing and he was deeply paying attention to it.

This unnerved Neo to an extent. She knew he wouldn't find out it was her but an unfounded sense of nervousness still overtook her thoughts. After a few minutes of Neo internally worrying the report ended and Fenix muted the TV.

"Well did I do well with grabbing breakfast? Was there at least something you liked there?"

She grabbed her scroll to reply.

 **Yes you did good. I love eggs and toast for breakfast. BTW I'm sorry for this morning.**

"The cuddling me to death, destroying the room, or free show of some of your womanly assets?" He smirked as he finished.

 **Yes to all.**

"Ah its fine. I've got some extra lien so don't worry about the damage to the room. As for the rest of it, well let's say it started my day off right."

She punched his shoulder and rolled her eyes at him. He just smiled a wide smile and got up.

"Well time for me to start getting ready. Big day. Got to report to the docks to go to my first day of Beacon in an hour and a half."

As he slowly prepared he began asking Neo questions about her first day at Haven. Wondering if he could get any insider information as to how initiation might go. When she replied that each academy does their initiation differently he turned his questions to about her experiences at a hunter academy. She didn't seem to annoyed with his questions and he figured any advice from somebody who had gone through it before would help at this point.

After they had prepared for their day and changed into their normal combat attire. They only had thirty minutes until Fenix needed to be on the dustplane. Fenix checked out and they began walking towards the airport.

Of course as they walked Fenix insisted on Neo holding onto his arm. She took it knowing he was going to keep insisting until she finally took it. It was his preferred way to walk with her after all. They strolled down the streets of Vale engaging in small talk, and enjoying each other's company for as long as they could.

They eventually reached their destination much to the displeasure of both parties. In the same way Neo had done the night before, as they approached the place where they would have to split ways Fenix instinctively slowed their pace. He turned to face her, not wanting to say goodbye but realizing the time was quickly approaching.

"So, think we could do this again sometime? I mean not spend the night in a hotel room again, but like go on another date?"

She silently giggled at him and nodded yes.

"Great, well…" He leaned into her and before she could realize what was happening he kissed her on the cheek. He then whispered into her ear, "Until next time m'lady."

He turned to walk away but Neo wasn't going to let it go at that. She grabbed his arm to turn him back around. As he turned back towards her she leapt into him and planted her lips on his.

First thing Fenix had to pay attention to was the small beauty throwing herself at him and him having to catch her in his arms to support her. It took him a moment or two to notice she was kissing him. When he recovered from the shock he absorbed the feeling of sensuality and kissed her back.

Her lips were cool and soft against his own. Much like the rest of her body, her lips were small compared to his as he engulfed them. The more he kissed back the more he noticed the sweet taste on her lips that seemed to intoxicate him and draw him further in. He put his arms on her petite hips and aggressively pulled her up against him. He had to halfway hold her up to him so that the difference in height didn't interrupt their embrace. She seemed surprised by the bold move but made no effort to stop him. In fact she wrapped her arms around him so that her left arm was around his lower back and her right hand was cradling the back of his head. He brushed his tongue along her lips begging for access to her mouth so they could delve further into their lust for each other. She not only allowed it but initiated the battle of tongue supremacy. After a quick bout she broke off the kiss and lightly pushed herself away from him.

"Wow, that was, really good." Fenix had difficulty getting the words out due to the lack of oxygen going to his brain from not breathing during their short make out session.

Neo raised her eyebrows and nodded as she attempted to catch her own breath.

Just then the intercom came to life with a high pitched squeeling noise. Will all Beacon students please report to terminal twenty three in ten minutes? All Beacon student report to terminal twenty three in ten minutes. Thank you." Fenix found himself disappointed as he realized he needed to start heading that way now.

He grabbed Neo's hand and kissed it in the typical suave gentleman move. He went to pull her into another embrace but before he could she smiled at him and handed him a piece of paper. As he took it she curtsied and flickered from sight, teleporting away.

He looked down to see a scroll number and the imprint of a kiss accented by pink lipstick on the paper. All he could do is stare at the paper and smile a goofy smile. He entered the number into his scroll and nicknamed it sweet thing. 'I think she'll appreciate that nickname' he thought to himself as he turned to walk into the terminal.

He checked his bag in but was allowed to keep his swords on him as he stood in the waiting area. He began scoping out the other prospective students and few stood out to him. First of all he noticed the two sisters from outside the nightclub the night before standing together. The little red hooded one seemed to be scolding the older blonde haired sister for something. A girl with short ginger hair was talking animatedly to a stoic looking boy in what appeared to be western styled clothing with a green color. In the center of the room was a Spartan looking woman being bombarded by people trying to get her attention. One said person trying to gain the Spartans attention was a girl with white hair and a similarly white dress with a familiar logo on the back of her coat.

"A Schnee huh? Well that makes this a little bit more interesting." He muttered to himself.

His gaze then fell across somebody who looked rather familiar. He squinted his eyes to inspect the person further to determine if it was indeed who he thought it was. As he noticed a signature item on the person his suspicions were confirmed. He started making his way through the crowd to intercept them.

"No way…"

 **(A/N): Alright next chapter is the first day at Beacon! The upcoming chapters are going to be getting a little bit longer due to so much content being put in before a good stopping point. Also thank you to all who have reviewed and followed this story! If you haven't yet make sure you do!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: A Beacon of friendship

"JAUNE MUTHAFUCKIN' ARC!" Fenix roared at the top of his lungs.

The blonde haired blue eyed boy in question turned around as if expecting a bully to be coming after him for his lunch money. When he turned he adapted a half defensive half pleading stance. While most of his body took the typical defensive stance, his hands shot out waving in front of his face in an effort to convince the supposed attacker to not punch his lights out. His expression turned to a deer in the headlights look when he saw not an old nemesis, but one of his oldest closest friends coming across the room to greet him.

"Fenix?" Was all the blonde knight could muster out before he was brought into a bro hug from his old friend. "What are you doing here?"

Fenix, noticing the apparent shock on his friend's face stepped back and motioned to the entirety of the room. While he did he noticed all eyes in the room had been trained on the duo. Not too surprising with how vocal his greeting had been. He then turned to address the crowd.

"Old friends." With as simple an explanation as that, most of the other prospective students understood and turned their attention back to what they were previously doing. Fenix meanwhile turned his attention back to his friend.

"What am I doing here? Kind of obvious wouldn't you say? I mean if anything I should be asking you. So your dad finally gave you some proper training? Oh and how about that sword on your hip? Isn't that your dad's old sword?" With the barrage of questioning ending Fenix noticed Jaune flapping his mouth open and close as if to formulate a proper response.

Now Fenix had also taken some training in conversationalist methods to help loosely interrogate somebody and tell if they were telling the truth or not. Jaune was currently avoiding Fenix's eyes, stumbling over his words, and fidgeting with his hands. The most basic tell tale signs of either hiding something or a blatant lie was about to surface. Also knowing Jaune's past and his family better than most, Fenix put two and two together. He quickly cut Jaune's most likely pathetic excuse of a lie off by holding his hand up in front of the boy's face. He motioned with his head for the two to walk away from the crowd to continue their discussion. Once they had gotten out of ear shot of even the faunus students Fenix decided to continue their conversation.

"Ok so what do I need to know to help you out?"

He was only met with a quizzical look from his blonde compadre.

"What are you covering up? I need to know so if I get asked anything about you that I don't get your story wrong and throw unneeded attention at you." Fenix had to repress a sigh. He knew something was up. Last time he had seen Jaune he was… well… he was a weakling. Jaune couldn't fight and the only way the bigger kids at their school would leave him alone was because he was friends with Fenix. It only took Fenix stepping in to protect Jaune once for the rest of the school to get the hint and leave him alone.

Jaune gave a defeated look and slumped his shoulders.

"All of it."

"Excuse me?" Fenix countered with a serious tone in his voice.

"All of it." Jaune repeated while lowering his voice to a very quiet whisper. "My transcripts are fake. I snuck away from home and stole my dad's sword. I haven't exactly let them know where I am yet and won't until I'm for sure in Beacon. As for the specifics about me, the only thing different from my real life is that my transcripts say I'm an accomplished fighter."

Fenix had a stern look on his face as the blonde finished. He put his right arm on Jaune's left shoulder and squeezed tightly with two fingers in a pinching motion. This caused the knight to wince and crumple under the numbing feeling coming from the pressure point Fenix was exploiting. He looked to see Fenix's eyes fixed on Jaune's with a dead serious demeanor.

"Jaune, please for the love of all that is good and holy, tell me you didn't sneak into a school for warriors to become a hero with absolutely no training. Last time I saw you your dad still was refusing to give you any training at all and that was only four years ago." Fenix was trying to give off an authoritative attitude towards his now seemingly idiotic friend.

"I mean I had some training." Jaune's reply came with a heavy emphasis on the word "some." With that reply though came a new wave of pain from the pressure in his shoulder as Fenix tightened his hold.

"You mean to tell me you got some training from somebody besides your parents?" Fenix hissed the words out through grit teeth.

"Remember you taught me a few things behind my parents backs?"

"That was four years ago Jaune! And it was the most basic of lessons!" At this point Fenix had to stop himself from all out yelling.

"Well I've taken that and progressed with it. I can kill a small Grimm one on one now." Jaune seemed to think his defense was a reasonable one.

"Jaune, that's not exactly enough to make me feel relieved about your abilities. I don't want you here and accidently putting yourself in danger because you bit off more than you can chew without knowing it. I'm just looking out for you. Not trying to say this is something you shouldn't do because only you should be able to tell yourself what you think is the right thing to do. I may not see this as the sanest decision I've ever seen in my life but I'll reserve my total judgment because you are my friend. You've always been a smart one so I'll trust your instincts."

"Wow thanks Fenix that means a lot, especially coming from you."

"Yeah yeah now let's get moving, looks like they are loading the dust plane." At that Fenix noticed Jaune visibly pale and his demeanor change to downright horrified. He had forgotten that Jaune's Achilles heel was something so simple. Or the way he had found that out. Seriously he was never getting on a roller coaster with that guy ever again.

"Still not over the motion sickness huh?" He chuckled as they walked the hall to board the dust plane. Jaune was already practicing controlling his breathing in preparation for the trip.

The trip itself wasn't that long and Fenix did his best to help his friend out. However, after the holographic image of a professor giving them a prerecorded welcome message ended, the plane hit a little turbulence. Jaune's eyes shot Fenix a worried look and Fenix pointed Jaune towards the trash can that was near the exit hatch. As Jaune hurried towards the safety of the trash receptacle, the plane hit another pocket of turbulence. Jaune couldn't help but to spew a small amount of vomit.

Right on to the blonde girl's boots.

The red cloaked sister quickly noticed and pointed it out. Both girls began freaking out trying to clean the boots and not spread the discharged stomach acid anymore. The blonde girl looked around trying to locate the source of the mess on her shoes. When she zeroed in on Jaune her demeanor turned downright vindictive.

Fenix made a beeline to stop her from what looked like was about to be a murderous rampage on his sickly companion. He stepped in front of her and noticed her eyes were a crimson red. This was a familiar sight to him. He had seen eyes like those before and they meant one thing. Bloodlust was evident here. He was going to need to calm her down before he could talk some sense into her. He began his disarmament of her anger towards Jaune with a sure fire method.

"Wow you have beautiful eyes."

"Huh?" Was all she could respond with. Immediately her eyes changed from the crimson red to a soft lilac.

Works every time.

"I said, you have beautiful eyes."

"Uh well, thank you?" She seemed to be at a loss for words. They way she was stumbling over her words made Fenix believe this was an unfamiliar feeling for her. He needed to capitalize on her unnerved state.

"Now could you wait a moment before pulverizing my friend over there?" Fenix adapted a confident stance and motioned to Jaune with a thumb over his shoulder. At this her aggressive nature began to return.

"Why shouldn't I?" She spoke through grit teeth but her eyes remained lilac. Fenix felt like he had her here.

"Because trying to beat up a person who is currently fighting a losing battle with his stomach is only going to create more collateral damage. And by that I mean he is just going to barf all over you if you do anything to him at this point."

At this the girl seemed to relax her clenched fists as the truth of Fenix's words. She was relaxing but he could tell she wasn't totally convinced that she didn't need to take out her frustration on the knight. Fenix decided to take it up a notch.

"Also, the guy is suffering from motion sickness. It's not like he intentionally did that and I can guarantee you he feels bad about it. Beating up somebody who is already suffering to a degree is not the right thing to do here." This logic seemed to convince the younger sister. She hung her head low and looked like a kicked puppy. Fenix felt bad for making her sad. She wasn't the one supposed to be catching the blunt of this guilt train.

"Well it would make me feel better." The blonde girl crossed her arms in a defiant attitude. 'Well that one backfired' Fenix thought to himself as he decided to try a different approach.

"Ok then, let's just add assaulting a potential classmate to your list of offenses in the past twenty four hours. I'm sure the headmaster of Beacon would love to hear why you thrashed a boy on the transport over here. Oh, and let's not forget the fact that you destroyed a nightclub and fled the scene of the crime. No telling how many of the club's employees and civilians you may have injured during your little rampage by the way."

That did it. Both girls' mouths made an 'O' shape to help complete the looks of complete shock on their faces.

"H-how did you…?" Was all the blonde girl could stumble out. Fenix inwardly smirked but decided to rub a little salt in the wound. So to speak. He frowned and made his face resemble something of sadness.

"I rescued a girl from a gang trying to rob her earlier yesterday. She was ambushed and cornered in an alleyway when I happened to stumbled upon the scene. She was shaken up after I scared them off so I offered to walk her home. Her apartment is above the nightclub and when we got there we both saw the place explode and you jump out of the window. Naturally with the place in ruins and the police going to rope the place off as a crime scene she couldn't stay there. So how does that make you feel? A girl almost got taken advantage of and as she gets to her place of safety she sees you destroy it and run away."

Fenix knew he was laying it on really thick. He also didn't enjoy distorting the truth to the girls but knew that this was going to get his point across. As he finished he could tell the damage had been done. Both girls now adopted the kicked puppy look. It was a cute look to say the least but it wasn't the good cute. The kind of cute that shouldn't really be cute given the circumstances. That could be used as a dangerous weapon. As Fenix pondered this, the red garbed girl spoke up.

"Is she ok? Did she have somewhere to stay?" He looked over to the speaker and noticed something that stunned him for a moment.

Silver eyes.

Wait, first a girl with a mane of hair and red eyes and now a silver eyed girl with a cape? This was the weirdest case of déjà vu he had ever experienced. And yet, both of the girls had a sense of familiarity to them. This HAD to be a coincidence right? Fenix brushed off the strange feelings his instincts were giving him and recovered from his shock.

"Yeah I found her a hotel room to house her for the night last night. Could you do me a favor though little red?" She noticeably perked up at his question. As did the blonde, but she also gave Fenix a suspicious glare.

"Name it." Fenix smiled at the girl's response. This one has a kind heart. Those are increasingly hard to find. He made a mental note to befriend the silver eyed girl at least. Probably wouldn't hurt to be on the good side of the fiery blonde as well.

"Think you can try to keep your sister here out of trouble?" With this he ruffled the silver eyed girl's hair. She smiled and playfully smacked his hand away.

"I can try. Oh what's your name? Mine is Ruby!" With her excited introduction the girl beamed a bright smile and stuck her hand out for Fenix to shake.

"Name's Fenix. A pleasure to meet you." Fenix did his customary greeting of the female gender and took her hand. Instead of shaking it though he pulled it up and kissed the back of her hand. The girl blushed as red as her hood at the gesture.

"What?" Fenix turned to look at the flabbergasted blonde who just spoke up. Apparently this type of greeting was not the norm around these parts.

"And to whom do I have the pleasure of meeting here?" With this Fenix stepped over to the blonde and did the same greeting he had done with her sister. One thing Fenix had learned the hard way was that if you treated siblings (especially sisters) differently there was going to be hell to pay. He took her hand and kissed the back of it, earning a similar shade of blushing from the blonde haired girl.

"Y-uh-Yang. Names Yang." She seemed to be composing herself so Fenix decided now was a good time to smooth things over.

"A pleasure to meet you as well m'lady." With that the girl seemed to blush a slightly darker shade of red. Fenix then turned so that he was facing both the sisters so to speak to both of them directly.

"Look I'm sorry for making that uncomfortable, but I just wanted to get my point across. Both that you need to think things through a little bit before rushing to beat people up, and to save my friend over there from any further emasculating than he is already dealing with at the moment." Fenix motioned over his shoulder again with his thumb pointing to Jaune. He was still standing over the trash can trying to hold the majority of his breakfast down.

"What you mean vomit boy over there?" Yang's joke was accompanied with a cheshire grin. Seems she has a quick recovery rate from embarrassing or uncomfortable situations. Fenix was going to need something to keep all these mental notes about his new friends in. He couldn't help but laugh at the nickname of his old friend though.

"Vomit boy huh? He is going to hate that." Before Fenix could get his next sentence out the craft lurched to a stop and the hatch began to lower to signal the students to exit. Jaune at the lurch looked up frantically and noticed the sign of freedom from his metal death trap. Fenix had to admit one thing, Jaune was quick when it came to his motion sickness being remedied. Jaune was the first one out of the ship and Fenix lost sight of where he had gone.

Fenix exited the dust plane walking alongside the two sisters. Before they got to the courtyard Fenix decided he had better leave them to find and tend to Jaune.

"Oh and by the way" he paused to get the girls' attention. Once he had it he gave them a wicked grin.

"Make sure to us that nickname on him as much as possible." Ruby giggled and Yang let out a loud hearty laugh.

"Deal!" They said in unison and with that Fenix took his leave. He walked ahead of the girls as they took in the sight of Beacon. He had to admit it was quite the sight, but he had a more pressing task to complete. He took out his right handed sword, the one he lovingly named Veloces. He found it easier to locate people he was looking for when he had at least one sword drawn. This didn't happen in his previous stealth/covert missions but he didn't need to hide here. So he just walked around looking for Jaune with Veloces drawn and Cornibus (his left handed sword) still in its sheath.

As he searched he heard a commotion to his left. He looked to see Yang and Ruby standing there. Ruby was apparently geeking out at all the different weapons on display. He even saw her look his way and overheard her say something about a "fire sword."

Child please.

The twins are not so simple as to be just plain fire swords.

Finally, Fenix spotted Jaune lagging behind the mass group of students walking from the plane. He still looked disheveled but appeared to have at least slightly recovered from his motion sickness now that he was on solid ground. Fenix walked up to him, sheathing his sword as he approached as to get Jaune's attention. Jaune looked up and gave him a weak smile to convey he was feeling better.

"So, ready to make new friends?" At this Jaune visible winced.

"You know how I am around new people Fenix." Fenix remembered all too well how his shy friend was when it came to the social aspect of his life. That was to say he was horrendous at making new friends. The boy was about as social as a rock. Yes cliché, but completely accurate in Jaune's case. Sadly Fenix knew he was going to have to help him.

"Well you just need to wait for the right moment to make a good impression." As Jaune was about to rebut, an explosion rocked the court yard. The two boys turned their attention to the source of the commotion. They saw Ruby being berated by the Schnee. A vial of red fire dust rolled across the ground and stopped at the foot of a black clothed and haired girl. She sort of reminded Fenix of a ninja for some reason. The girl had a bow on the top of her head and Fenix saw it twitch when she noticed the Schnee emblem on the vial.

"…wait" Fenix muttered. Jaune heard him and turned to see Fenix staring intently at the girl in black.

"Do you know her?"

"No but…" his speech was suddenly halted when he saw her walking. Well more, the way she walked. It was identical to the way a cat would walk. More along the lines of a saunter.

"Ah ha!" Fenix realize he said it out loud and received a questioning look from Jaune. To cover his realization he decided to steer the conversation back to Jaune.

"Your chance to make a new friend. Something tells me you are about to get your chance."

"W-what?!" Jaune actually looked scared at the possibility.

"Come on Jaune you are going to have to socialize with other people besides me here. You might as well start on your first day instead of putting it off." Fenix then directed his attention as the Schnee nabbed the vial of dust from the ninja girl with the bow and stormed away. He then looked to see Ruby turning to talk to the ninja girl, only to see her walking away. She fell to the ground dramatically and Fenix knew that was the moment.

"Go go go go!" Fenix loudly whispered to Jaune as he pushed him in the direction of Ruby.

As soon as he made sure Jaune was actually going to talk to the downed Ruby he made off in the direction that the Schnee girl had gone. He took off in a light jog and once he reached the main hall he slowed down to a walk. The Schnee girl was fan girling all over the Spartan looking girl. Fenix decided now was as good a time as any to make his approach.

"Hello, care if I join in?" His question was met by a pair of emerald and crystal blue eyes fixed on him. One gave a pleading 'please save me' look while the other gave a stern 'how dare you' look. His drive to save the Spartan overcame his desire to flee and avoid the wrath of the Schnee. He pressed on with the introductions but decided to play it safe and start with the Spartan.

"Fenix. Fenix Fall. Whom might I have the pleasure of speaking with?" He stuck out his hand to give the appearance of initiating a simple handshake. People who knew him better obviously knew that wasn't the case though. The girl gave a quizzical look to Fenix as his hand sat there untouched. As if trying to decipher if he was being genuine or just plain polite. She apparently made her decision and reciprocated his greeting.

"Pyrrha Nikos." She stated simply as she put her hand into his. He quickly captured her hand, brought it up to his lips, and kissed the back of it.

"A pleasure." He then turned his attention to her outfit and weapons. His inner weapons geek took over and he began rambling. "Your armor is exquisite. Was it custom made or did you intend for it to resemble the ancient Spartan warrior armor? What is your shield made of? Oh is that a tri-functional weapon? You don't seem many of those around." He then froze up realizing how uncomfortable he must have been making her feel. He stepped back to compose himself.

"I'm sorry I'm a bit of a weapons enthusiast." Pyrrha brushed it off that he was forgiven but the Schnee girl didn't let it go that easily.

"I'm sorry, Fenix is it? Do you have any idea who you are talking to?"

"Well Pyrrha here and yourself of course. I don't believe you have properly introduced yourself yet though." Fenix couldn't help but poke fun at the Schnee for being the less formal of the three.

"This is Pyrrha Nikos. THE Pyrrha Nikos." Her heavy emphasis on the word 'the' showed him that he was supposed to know who she was. He quickly racked his brain and found that he did in fact know her.

"Oh that's right!" This reaction seemed to satisfy the Schnee while simultaneously deflate Pyrrha.

"You're on the front of the Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes Box! So what did you do to earn that one? Usually it's only sports figures or famous hunters or huntresses who get that gig."

Fenix watched Pyrrha giggle into her hand and smile warmly to him. Fenix couldn't ignore how the air around him seemed to grow cold though. He turned to see the Schnee girl fuming. He swore he could see smoke coming off of her but decided he best move quickly to distract her before she decided to take out her frustration on him.

"You know you still haven't introduced yourself." It seemed to snap her attention back to reality but her hostile demeanor did not falter one bit.

"Weiss… Schnee." The words seemed to be dripping with venom as they escaped through tightly clenched teeth. She then held her hand out for him to kiss as he had done for Pyrrha. He could tell she was tense but he didn't think it'd be so bad that it would be noticeable when his lips touched the back of her hand. Once again it was time to move forward with the subject so to deflect some of the malicious intent currently aimed at him.

"So I realize this may come as a shock to you but I have been off the grid so to speak for…well for most of my life. So I apologize for not knowing who you are Pyrrha if I should have. So are you a high ranking political figure's daughter?" The explanation of his circumstances as well as his polite manor seemed to help diffuse the tension in the air. Pyrrha giggled again at the assumption that she was some important figure's child. Weiss visibly calmed down a little bit but her glare at the boy had not relaxed.

"Actually its rather refreshing for somebody not to know who I am Fenix so thank you. No, I am not the daughter of some high authority figure. I was the top of my class at Sanctum Academy and won the Mistral championship four years in a row." As she explained to Fenix her seemingly genuine smile turned into a more forced one. It didn't take all of Fenix's training in techniques of reading people to determine that this was a slightly sore subject for her.

"Let me guess, pressure from the parents to do well in the tournaments so that your family could have a better life?" Fenix's guess was met by Weiss frowning at him yet again. As if it were appalling that he suggest such a thing about her idol. To her surprise she glanced over only to see Pyrrha rubbing the back of her head and looking away as if to insinuate that his assumption was spot on.

"Although I am not supposed to admit this… you are not far off. Outside of Mistral nobody really knows my backstory that my family was disgraced by my grandfather. We fell out of the good graces of the nobles and life was difficult for my father. Once I was discovered to be a prodigy fighter, per say, at a young age my parents saw it as a way to improve all of our lives. Naturally after I won my first title I started getting recognized and the rest as they say is history. My parents had the right intentions for forcing me to compete in the tournaments but I simply want to help people. Not fight for entertainment like some gladiator. So, much to their displeasure, I enrolled here to become a huntress." Fenix gave a look of compassion to the girl. He didn't understand the concept from personal experience but he felt bad for her. Feeling like your parents are forcing you to do something you do not want to do is something most children actually experience but not of this magnitude. Fenix wondered if it was only because he didn't completely understand the concept since he had never personally gone through something like this though.

The look of shock on Weiss's face was utterly priceless though.

"Well Pyrrha I can honestly say I'm glad things have played out the way they have so far." She squinted her eyes and gave him a confused look. "Otherwise you may never have been where you are now and I may have never met you. I can tell you are a genuinely good person and people like that are hard to find. I hope we can consider each other friends."

"I'd like that very much Fenix." She smiled brightly. Fenix looked to see Jaune and Ruby striding into the hall.

"Well my socially awkward friend over there has just gotten back from talking with a girl." He directed the two girls' attention to Jaune and Ruby. "I better go talk with him and make sure he didn't make a total dunce of himself. Ladies it was a pleasure and I hope to see you both a lot during our time here." Pyrrha politely nodded and waved as Fenix walked away. She then turned her attention back to Jaune for some reason. Fenix swore he heard her say something along the lines "quite handsome" being used to describe his scraggly looking friend. Weiss broke out of her stupor from earlier and resumed her seething persona. This time it appeared to be aimed at Ruby and not at Fenix. He decided to not question it and escape while he could. It appeared something had gotten Ruby's attention as she said a goodbye to Jaune and headed off into the crowd. Fenix then got Jaune's attention and motioned for him to join up with Fenix near the stage.

"So how'd it go?"

"Well besides being called vomit boy I'd say it went pretty good." Fenix had to repress a smirk at Ruby using the designated nickname. His attention was caught by a certain white haired heiress marching angrily towards an unsuspecting Ruby. She was distracted because she was talking rather animatedly to her blonde sister. Jaune noticed Weiss walking as well but his reaction was very different from Fenix's worried one.

"She's beautiful!"

"No." Fenix was going to sink that ship before it could leave the harbor. "Just no. She will literally impale you with her sword if you make a move on her right now."

"But I have to! It's love at first sight!" The arc had an overly dramatic tone to his voice.

"Jaune just trust me, she…" He didn't get it out because they were interrupted by the heiress in discussion yelling very loudly.

"You!"

"Oh God it's happening again!" Ruby jumped into her sisters arms. Like that was going to stop a rampaging Schnee. Fenix turned to Jaune, grabbing his shoulder roughly to attract his attention away from the girls.

"Ok listen, do not approach right now. It would be like stepping into a minefield. Let them figure it out. If they acknowledge either of us then we will have to intervene but stay at a safe distance for now. Are we clear?" Fenix gave Jaune a look to make sure he understood.

"Crystal." The blonde nodded in acknowledgement. Just then fate decided to screw the fire wielder over for the day as they directed their attention back to the arguing girls. Ruby had her hand stuck out for Weiss to shake.

"Hi Weiss. I'm Ruby! Wana hang out? We can shop for school supplies." Fenix couldn't help but chuckle at somebody thinking shopping for school supplies was a good way to make friends.

"Yeah! And we could pain our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys like tall blonde and scraggly over there!" With that she made the motion of pointing with her thumb over her shoulder at Jaune.

Oh God no.

Jaune please tell me you understand sarcasm.

"HMM?!" Jaune perked up at being mentioned by Weiss.

Apparently he doesn't. Well there went Fenix's chances of Jaune not creating some scene with Weiss. He just hoped Weiss wouldn't kill him or worse embarrass him.

"She noticed me! That's it I have to go over!" Jaune started making his way over but Fenix grabbed his collar and stopped him. Somehow fate was back on his side now because the microphone made the noise of somebody approaching it. Fenix looked up to see Headmaster Ozpin ready to make his speech.

"No way man! The Headmaster is about to speak."

"I'll… keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people." At this Fenix noticed many of his fellow prospective students seemed to brighten up. "But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction." 'Annnnnd there it is' Fenix thought to himself. Many students either took offense or looked upset at the Headmaster's last statement. "You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

As the Headmaster walked away from the microphone Fenix pondered what he had just heard. It almost seemed that speech was aimed directly at him. During his initial evaluation if he should be given the chance to attend Beacon the Headmaster and Professor Port had asked him why he wanted to be a hunter. He admittedly confessed he didn't quite know what it meant to be a true hunter but he felt that doing the right thing and protecting the people was what he wanted to do. He also told them he expected during his time at Beacon that he would learn what the true meaning of being a hunter meant. As well as gain a proper education that would help move his quest along. It seemed in one fell swoop; Ozpin had made Fenix start questioning his motives, on the first day no less. Then a blonde professor, the one who gave them their introductory speech on the dust plane through a hologram, stepped up to the podium.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You're dismissed." Her speech was short and to the point compared to the Headmaster's.

He turned to talk to Jaune but to his horror he was already walking towards the girls. Nothing he could do now but watch as Jaune was going to most likely make a fool of himself. He pinched the bridge of his nose as Jaune leaned in on the girls' current conversation.

"I'm a natural blonde you know." He flashed a cheesy smile but the only reaction he got form the girls was Weiss mimicking Fenix's pose of pinching her nose and sighing. Before Jaune could dig himself into a deeper hole, Fenix intervened.

"Nope." He said to Jaune as he grabbed the back of his collar and drug him away. He saluted with two fingers to the girls and gave them an apologetic smile. As the girls watched Fenix drag the knight towards the cafeteria, Fenix swore he saw a look of gratitude from Weiss. Well that was unexpected.

Fenix only stopped dragging Jaune backwards once they had reached the doors that led into the cafeteria. Once he let go Jaune turned around to face him with a frustrated look on his face.

"What the hell man?"

"Jaune, listen to me carefully. She will eat you alive." He pushed to doors open and he waited to continue the conversation until they were in line for their dinner. Fenix decided to grab a generous slab of ham with mashed potatoes, green beans, and a fruit parfait. Jaune, ever the junk food lover, grabbed a cheeseburger with French fries and a slice of chocolate cake. Fenix shook his head at his good friend, for more than one reason really, but mainly for his choice of meal the night before initiation at this moment. Once they sat down at a large table in near the middle of the dinning section Fenix continued his explanation.

"That was sarcasm she was using when she mentioned you. I figured it best to get you out of there before she turned her anger from Ruby onto you."

"Wait you know Ruby?"

Before Fenix could respond he heard a familiar voice pipe up behind them.

"Hey Fenix! Hey Jaune! Is it ok if we sit with you?"

The two boys turned to see the very girl they were speaking about and her sister standing behind them. They were still holding their trays politely awaiting the boys' answer.

"Absolutely." Fenix motioned to the seats across from the boys. Yang sat across from Fenix and Ruby across from Jaune. Fenix inspected their trays. Yang had a large steak with carrots and mashed potatoes along with a slice of the same chocolate cake Jaune had picked. Ruby had cookies. Seriously just a bunch of chocolate chip cookies.

"Umm." Was all he could say as he motioned with his head towards Ruby's tray.

"Don't ask. I still don't understand it myself." Yang shrugged her explanation off as she cut into her steak.

"Hey! Cookies are an essential part of the food pyramid!" Ruby gave an adorable pout and crossed her arms at Fenix. Seriously that level of cuteness should be illegal he thought to himself.

"Yeah for desser- you know what? I'm just going to stop now and agree with you. I'm not going to win this argument and I'm just going to team up with the winning side here." Fenix knew getting on Ruby's side was the only way he was going to avoid an argument in this case. He was not wrong. Jaune's look of utter disbelief was matched with Ruby's beaming smile and Yang's smirk.

"You were right sis. He is a smart one. Good manners too. Much better than Vomit boy's here." At the mention of Jaune's new nickname all the members of the table, save for Jaune himself, grinned. Jaune went to protest but was cut off by Fenix.

"You puked on her boots. You earned that one man." Fenix couldn't suppress the troll like grin that was plastered onto his face.

"I'm never going to live that down am I?" Was the only response Jaune could muster at this point.

"Nope." Both of the sisters replied in unison. Making sure to pop the 'P'.

"You two are seriously adorable together." Fenix couldn't believe he let that one slip as he realized he had said it out loud.

"Oh? Just together? Sure you don't want to try that out with me just one-on-one?" Yang said flirtatiously. She made sure to press her chest together and give Fenix a good view while simultaneously batting her eyelashes at him. Jaune near had a nosebleed and couldn't help but stare. Fenix stayed calm, cool, and collected much to the ire of Yang.

"But no making any moves on my little sister boys. She is only fifteen after all." She relaxed her revealing pose and released Jaune from his trance.

"Yaaaaaang." Ruby wined at her older sister and gave her a 'seriously?' glare.

Jaune did a spit take and sprayed the soda he had been trying to drink all over Ruby. Before he had the decency to try to help clean her up he stammered out the question he was sure everybody would ask in that situation.

"Wait you're fifteen?!" Ruby gave a dejected look as she tried to clean herself up. Apparently she didn't want people thinking she was special.

"Hmm. Impressive." Fenix mumbled as he continued to eat his ham.

"That's all you can respond with?" Yang sat up straight and attempted to mimic Fenix in a mocking way. "Hmm. Impressive." She even put an exaggerated upper class male tone to her voice with her imitation of him. "She's a prodigy! Show a little more respect!"

Now Fenix wasn't dumb by any means. He could see the sparks of anger sprouting up in Yang's eyes. Just daring him to try and contest her. Something Fenix also wasn't was a coward. He saw a challenge to his attitude towards discovering Ruby's advancement. He accepted this challenge and decided to throw it back in the blonde girl's face.

"Yes, it is impressive that somebody be moved up two years ahead of schedule to attend a combat school. It is also impressive the sheer amount of thickness your skull must possess." Yang's eyes turned red at his insult and Ruby was making the universal 'you're dead' signal as she ran her index finger across her throat. Fenix wasn't done yet though.

"It is obvious that this subject makes your sister uncomfortable." He then turned to Ruby for his next statement. "Which I have no idea why. You should be proud of this fact. It just shows how truly badass you are." He winked at her and earned a blush from the crimson cloaked prodigy child. Turning back to Yang he continued further. "So I don't know why you continue to try and make her feel more uncomfortable than her situation already entails by spouting off her status to every person you meet. Granted you are proud of her and you have every right to be as a big sister. However, your job is to make her move here to be as smooth as possible. Not paint a target on her, which is exactly what you're doing."

Yang's eye turned back to their calm lilac color. She sat in thought for a moment before turning to Ruby.

"Is that true?"

"Wellllll. I know you love me and are happy for me sis, but bragging about me to everybody you have met here today is a little…much." Ruby was nervously fidgeting as she explained to her sister. All Yang could do was sigh.

"I'm sorry. I'm just so proud of you and you know how I can be. I'll try to slow down on the bragging to people about my baby sis."

"Apology accepted!" Ruby gave her sister a hug but was quickly crushed by her big sister hugging her back. At the sight of Ruby visibly turning blue and gasping for air, Fenix made the mental note to not get hugged by Yang. For the sake of his ribcage and vital organs depended on it. Yang then released Ruby and looked to the boys. As Ruby inhaled the sweet oxygen her lungs had been starved of, Yang tried to find something to say to the boys. Fenix realized she wasn't the greatest at this apology thing (neither was he honestly) so he thought to cut her off.

"Don't worry about it; I'm sure mine would be the same way if she were still around." Jaune winced since he knew enough about Fenix's past to know that was a touchy subject to approach. Unfortunately the youngest one at the table did not. Before Jaune or Yang could stop her she asked the obliviously honest question.

"Where did she go?" Jaune winced harder this time and was noticed by Ruby. She then realized what she had done. Before she could apologize Fenix replied.

"She died when I was six. Grimm attack." He then pointed to the white scarred claw marks on his right arm to show proof to her.

"I'm sorry! I didn't…" Before she could finish Fenix held up his hand to stop her.

"It's ok. You didn't know and it was a long time ago. But on a happier note, Jaune how are your sisters?" The table gave a collective sigh of relief at the subject change.

"Well not much has changed. All seven of them like to pick on me as much as possible. With only two of my sisters left at home so my parents are debating adopting." Before Fenix could engage Jaune on how great he thought the adoption idea was, Yang started choking on her food. Ruby went to the rescue and performed the Heimlich maneuver. When Yang had recovered she yelled at the Arc.

"SEVEN SISTERS?!" The entire dining hall became silent and stared at Jaune.

"Y-yeah." When he answered the hall slowly began to be filled with the noise of conversation again. Fenix knew Jaune was shy so he also knew to wait until the noise level was high enough so they could continue their conversation in a somewhat peaceful manner. Once Jaune felt comfortable again he explained further.

"I'm a part of one of the two sets of twins in my family. My twin sister is Joan. My older sister who is Fenix's age is Jessica. My…wait a minute." Three sets of eyes suddenly stared intently at Fenix.

"Fenix, you are a year older than me."

"Yes Jaune."

"You're eighteen?" Ruby seemed the most surprised of the group.

"I am."

"You can buy alcohol?" Everybody glared at Yang for her comment.

"Can. Won't, but can." He gave a fake smile to Yang who just shot a challenging look to Fenix.

"I bet I can convince you."

"Highly doubt it, but you are welcome to try."

"Moving on, why are you enrolling a year late?" Jaune asked the million dollar question. Fenix thought of a way to deflect any suspicion and brightened up when he found one.

"Why is Ruby here two years early? Life happens." That explanation seemed enough for Ruby and Yang, but Jaune knew Fenix better. He knew Fenix was hiding something but decided his friend would tell him when the time came. A lot could have happened in the four years since he last saw Fenix.

After more small talk the group finished their dinner and decided to head to their respective bathrooms to perform their nightly rituals. Fenix took a quick shower and slipped into a pair of grey sport shorts with a blue stripe down the side. Seeing as Jaune was still getting ready and only in his boxers, Fenix decided to go out and claim a spot for the two of them. He took Jaune's bags along with his own and headed out into the ballroom.

He walked out and noticed an open spot in the middle of the room in the vicinity of Ruby and Yang. He took his bags over to the area and set it down. As he unrolled his sleeping bag he noticed some eyes had wondered his way. He chose to ignore it and finished preparing his bedding for the evening. As he sat down he heard Yang say something along the lines of "me likey." He looked over to see what she was talking about but she avoided his eyes and plopped down next to her sister.

"It's like a biiiiiig slumber party!"

"I don't think dad would approve of all the boys though." Ruby's serious response was showcased by the fact her eyes did not move from whatever she was writing.

"I know I do." She growled and then in Fenix's direction. He assumed she wasn't referring to him. He turned around to see who had caught her eye but he was met with a harrowing sight.

Jaune brought the damn onesie.

And he was wearing it as he walked towards Fenix.

"Aw hell no." Fenix quickly reached into Jaune's bag and found a pair of light blue sport shorts and a white shirt.

"Perfect." He quickly shot up and made his way towards Jaune. His friend was taking the long route to get to Fenix instead of going over some people which would have been the quickest way. As he did Jaune turned to look at him and stopped.

"Hmm?" Was all Jaune could get out before Fenix once again grabbed his collar and dragged him backwards into the bathroom. Jaune was flailing again but Fenix didn't say a word until they were safely in the boy's bathroom. Fenix flung Jaune in front of him and once the bathroom door shut he started his verbal assault of Jaune.

At least he would have if there had not been two people in the men's room with them.

And one was a girl.

"Hiya!" The hyperactive ginger girl waved to the boys ecstatically with one hand as she flawlessly brushed her hair with the other. Her companion, a stoic looking boy with long black hair just continued to wash his face. After his initial shock Fenix decided to hold off on scolding Jaune.

"Just change out of that thing, go find somewhere to burn it, and change into these." He then threw the sport shorts and T-shirt at Jaune's face. Jaune caught the clothing but then motioned to the girl.

"Uh, I kinda don't want to change in front of a girl."

"Then go into a stall and change." Fenix said flatly pointing to the only area in the room that he could change without the girl seeing him. Fenix then turned his attention to the girl and her boyfriend.

"Hello there, my name is Fenix Fall. Who might you be?" Holding out his hand he was surprised that the girl grasped his so tightly.

"Nora Valkyrie!" She then smiled and turned her firm grasp into an all-out death grip on his hand. Nonetheless he followed his gentlemanly code and kissed the back of her hand. That seemed to do it as she released him from her grip and skipped over to her boyfriend.

"Ren! I like him! He is so proper!" Just then a thought crossed Fenix's mind.

"Nora? You did wash your hand before I kissed it right?" The black haired boy snorted and covered his mouth with his hand. He composed himself quickly and returned to his stoic state. Nora gave Fenix a wide grin and put her hands on her hips.

"No silly, I didn't use the bathroom in here! This is the boys room!"

"Of course, how ridiculous of me to assume something like that. You wouldn't use the boy's bathroom you would only keep your friend here company in it." He laid the sarcasm on heavily but it seemed to go right over her head.

"Exactly! See I'm glad you understand!" The boy known as Ren was snickering into his hand again. Fenix couldn't help but chuckle himself as he went over to introduce himself.

"Fenix Fall." Ren took his hand and shook it firmly.

"Lie Ren."

"And I'm Jaune." The three turned to see Jaune had emerged from the stalls. Fenix smirked at his friend. He had that same lean build as Fenix although not nearly as toned as he was. The shirt hugged his figure well and Fenix thought that would help increase his chances of getting the attention of the female population here. In a good way, not the way that they would have noticed him for his bunny onesie.

"Better" Fenix stated a matter a factly.

"I must admit it is an improvement." Ren nodded.

"Does that mean I can have his onesie?" All three boys looked completely stupefied at Nora. "What? It looks comfy!" Before anybody could say anything else to make the situation about that monstrosity of men's pajamas, Fenix turned to walk out.

"It was a pleasure to meet you two!" Fenix yelled over his shoulder as he finally had had enough. Once again leaving Jaune to converse with new people was throwing him into uncomfortable territory for the blonde. Fenix couldn't help but feel he deserved it at this point for what he had put him through today. As soon as he stepped out of the bathroom he heard two girls scream

"OH NOT YOU AGAIN!"

Fenix flinched and brought his hands up in a defensive stance. Purely instinct at this point but then he realized the two girls were Yang and Weiss. To his relief the girls were not yelling at him but at each other. Ruby was in between the two trying to diffuse the situation. Fenix sighed as he began making his way over to the girls to try and save Ruby. As he strolled across the hall he noticed the black haired girl with the bow was involved in the situation. Well, more like annoyed that the three were arguing right next to her. He then noticed her pick up the candle and quickly blew it out. It was very effective in ending the girls' fight because unbeknownst to Fenix, the candle was the last source of light in the room. The entire room went pitch black and Fenix sprang into action to help the girls out.

Fenix snapped his fingers and his semblance ignited. His eyes sparked and caught fire as per usual. He summoned a flame into his cupped right hand with the palm facing the ceiling. All four girls turned awestruck to look at Fenix. Fenix was sure being the only source of light in the room was attracting more people's attention but he didn't pay them any mind.

"Rude."

"Excuse me?" The black haired girl replied.

"That was rather rude of you to leave these ladies in the dark. Literally." Fenix couldn't help but smirk at his little joke.

"He's perfect."

Three pair of eyes turned to stare at Yang who was holding her hands over her mouth. She didn't realize she had said that out loud until it was too late.

"Beg pardon?" Fenix could not even attempt to hide the surprise in his voice. He was completely caught off guard by the comment from the blonde girl.

"I-uh-you realize your eyes are on fire right?" Yang deflected his question. He decided to let it go seeing as how she wasn't the one he wanted to get into a debate with at the moment.

"Yes, and now if you wouldn't mind would you girls give me and her a little time to discuss manners when meeting new people?" He turned to look at the girl with the bow only for her to return a scowl. He could swear he heard a stifled growl escape her lips.

"And how do you suggest we do that? Unless you plan to escort us we won't make it to our sleeping bags. The light you are giving off only goes so far in here you know." Weiss's statement was true. The light he was giving off was bright enough for everyone in the room to see him but not enough for people to be able to see everything else clearly.

"Oh don't worry. I have a special escort for all three of you." At this Fenix raised his left hand and ignited a second flame into his left hand. Both flames flickered from the increase in aura being poured into them. The two flames brightened as they began to morph. The flames seemed to grow a set of black eyes and arms sprouted from their sides. They began to form a humanoid shape with the head of the figure being only slightly smaller than the body. Once they had fully transformed the two fire figures seemed to come to life and look up to their creator.

"There we go." He smiled to the one in his left hand and gently guided it towards Weiss. "One wisp for you princess." He then turned to the one in his right hand, smiled to it, and guided it towards Yang and Ruby. "And one for the sisters." He then made eye contact with both of the wisps and pointed to both of them. "Be polite."

The wisps nodded to Fenix once in understanding. Then they turned to their respective parties and bowed. Weiss and Yang were completely at a loss for words with this but Ruby couldn't contain her excitement.

"Oh he's so cute!" She gave a quick bow in response to the wisp and reached out to touch it. Remembering how Neo had reacted to his fire powers yesterday he decided to stop Ruby before she got burnt.

"Ruby." Fenix said sternly, causing her to stop and look his way. "They are still fire. I wouldn't suggest getting too hands on with them." He watched her slouch her shoulders in disappointment.

"Now then, they will escort you to your beds and will not leave until you dismiss them. Now goodnight ladies." He then turned to Ruby. "And Ruby?" She straightened up and looked into his blazing eyes. "You can play with them later but for now it's important you get some rest for tomorrow."

"Yay!" She softly cheered and gave a bright smile. "Thank you, and goodnight." She turned to walk towards her sleeping bag.

"G'night." Yang turned as well but not before giving Fenix a wink and a flirtatious grin. The wisp moved to fly above Ruby's head so as to give both the girls an equal amount of visibility.

"Hmph. Goodnight." Weiss turned and marched elegantly towards the other side of the room where her bedding was located. The wisp turned and hurriedly moved to catch up with the  
Schnee girl.

"Now, shall we?" He motioned with his hand towards the door leading out into the hallway.

"Why out there?" The black haired girl eyed him suspiciously.

"Not to be rude, but I want to speak with you on a private matter. And I think it would be best if we didn't stay here where people with advanced hearing could pick up on what we would be saying." He nodded to a large bear faunus boy sleeping nearby.

The girl gave him a menacing glare but agreed and began following Fenix out into the hallway. He paused at the door to wait for Weiss, Yang, and Ruby to arrive at their destinations. Yang and Ruby arrived first and as they got into their sleeping bags gave their wisp a polite wave. The wisp gracefully bowed and gave a twirl as it vanished. When Weiss finally arrived at her spot, next to Pyrrha, she slipped into her bag. The wisp just hovered above her waiting to be dismissed. After a moment she turned to face the wisp and gave it a wave to dismiss it. The wisp gave the same bow and spun as it disappeared. With both wisps' jobs done Fenix calmed his aura which effectively killed the burning eyes that showed his semblance was active. He then opened the door for the girl and gave an 'after you' motion with his free hand.

As they made their way down the hall Fenix processed a few thoughts in his head. He had noticed how the black haired girl with the bow winced from the sudden light when he activated his semblance. Her eyes did something rather peculiar. They seemed to dilate and refocus on him as if they were adjusting. The sudden change from darkness to light would do that but this was very exaggerated, much more than a normal pair of eyes.

That was the icing on the cake for him. He had been ninety percent sure earlier with the bow twitching and her prowling walk. After seeing how her eyes reacted he was certain.

This girl was a faunus. With the way she seemed to sway as she walked in front of him he was going to assume some animal from the cat family although he wasn't sure which specific one.

Something was puzzling though. Why was she attempting to hide it? Sure the faunus were discriminated against but this was Beacon. Hunters and huntresses who were swearing an oath to protect the innocent shouldn't be racist against a faunus huntress. As a matter a fact he thought they should be respected. Fenix knew he had to ask her because not knowing would absolutely drive him insane. Especially seeing how that bow twitch all the time.

Once they were both down the hall enough that he was certain they couldn't be heard he stopped her. She turned and moved to speak first.

"So, what was so important that it had to be done like a secret meeting?" As she spoke her bow twitched again. This time he didn't hide where he was looking at stared directly at her bow.

"You know it twitches?" He nodded with his head towards her bow. Her calm intimidating nature vanished as she turned into a nervous wreck.

"It must be a breeze."

"We are inside."

An uncomfortable silence enveloped the atmosphere between the two. Before the silence went for too long Fenix moved to push the conversation on.

"Look I know you are a faunus. I'm assuming ears?" Looking up to her bow again.

"How?" Was all she could ask.

"Well for the better part of eight years I was raised in an orphanage. Therefore, due to the sad fact that faunus children have a hard time getting adopted, I was pretty much raised surrounded by faunus. It's pretty easy to notice similarities when you have lived amongst people with similar characteristics for so many years. So I'm gonna go out on a limb here and guess… feline?" His guess caused her eyes to nearly double in size.

"T-that's right. I'm a cat faunus." She was starting to recover from the shock now.

"Well I know faunus tend to vary from species of animal so do you know what species of cat you are? Not to be rude, I was just guessing something along the lines of a jungle cat."

"What like a puma?"

"Not exactly. I was thinking more along the lines of a panther." They both chuckled but Fenix thought it really suited her.

"Sorry to disappoint but I'm just from the typical house cat species."

"Aw well that's not disappointing. There's nothing wrong with that. I personally think it's interesting. But, that isn't the entire reason I brought you out of the way to discuss this topic. I want to know why you are hiding it." She sighed. It looked like his question hadn't caught her off guard but she didn't seem to enjoy the new topic. Her typical stern face returned.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Well it's not exactly something you just go around telling everybody."

"How about this? If I guess it will you confirm if it's true?" She thought it over and then nodded deciding that was a fair deal. Normally, Fenix would have explained the process of how he came to his conclusion, but the fatigue of the day made him just want to be short and to the point right now.

"Ex-Fang?" This time her surprised look was more controlled as her eyes widened and she tensed up. However, it wasn't near as evident as the first time when he had told her he knew she was a faunus.

"Very good. Now how did you figure that out?"

"Simple, I used to be in a secret society too. Before you go asking, no I will not share any details about it for your own safety. When you have lived that type of life you notice others who have lived that life pretty easily. Only difference is mine trained me how to hide those features. They also trained me how to read people, which is why I noticed how you held yourself differently than most other students here do. You've seen bloodshed and by my estimations you've seen a lot of it." She nodded and seemed to accept his response. Then shot him a downright predatory smirk.

"So it's ok for you to know my secrets but it's not ok for me to know yours?" He held both hands up defensively.

"It's not like that. I'm not telling you because if you knew, they would target you for elimination. They take no chances. The only reason I got out alive is because of a technicality in their code of morality." He laughed but she seemed to pale at his comments. Apparently she thought the White Fang were the baddest of the bad. She would be wrong in that assumption and Fenix knew that first hand. He then realized they had spoken of secrets but not introduced themselves.

"By the way, names Fenix. Fenix Fall." He put his hand out in his typical handshake motion.

"Blake Belladonna." She took his hand but he naturally turned it and kissed the back of her hand.

"A gentleman. How typical." He felt there was a sarcastic tone there but he decided to ignore it.

"I try my best to be one. Now I feel we should probably start heading back to avoid more gossip about us being away for a period of time." He motioned back towards the ballroom. Blake couldn't help but smile and roll her eyes at what he said though. As they walked back Fenix felt the need to clue her in on a little bit of information on himself.

"Blake, you wouldn't be insulted by me giving you a nickname would you?"

She turned her head to eye him with a questioning look.

"When I make friends I tend to give them fun little nicknames that I will call them. You wouldn't be insulted if I called you something with a feline essence to it would you?"

"Depends, what is it?" He couldn't help but give a lopsided grin.

"Black Panther." She rolled her eyes again.

"I suppose I could get used to that. As long as it stays like a codename rather than a pet name. Oh and you tell no one about my being a faunus if you relish your manhood. Understood?" The look she gave was a devilishly playful one. He assumed she was joking but figured it was best not to assume in matters such as this. Not like he would tell anyone anyway.

"Fair enough." He opened the door and let her walk through first. Her bedding was right next to the door so he lit his semblance again to summon another wisp. He sent it to help Blake and after a short trip she made it to her spot. She told the wisp thank you and it bowed politely before retreating back to Fenix. He then used the wisp to get to his spot. Once he got there he took the metallic briefcase out of his bag and began fixing his aura inhibitors onto his arms. He then dismissed the wisp and it did its twirl and evaporate as Fenix turned his semblance off. He slipped into his sleeping bag and set the inhibitors to their typical five percent. As he started drifting off to sleep he decided to pull his scroll out and message a certain cute pink and brown eyed girl.

 **Fenix: Hey sweet thing. How has your day been?**

He was surprised to get a quick response from her this late.

 **Sweet Thing (A.K.A. Neo): Sweet thing huh? I like it. Better help me find you a good nickname ;-) and it's been good. I got back into my apartment today after the cops left. How was your first day at Beacon?**

 **F: Well I'm glad you got back into your place. Today was interesting to say the least found an old friend is going here too. Met some new friends and I'd be lying if I said a lot of them are pretty odd in their own ways. Pretty exhausting to be honest, but overall this place is pretty neat. Tomorrow's the big day.**

 **S.T.: Sounds fun and good luck! You better get some sleep. My boss needs to talk to me so I gotta go anyways. We can have that second date this weekend when you get settled ;-)**

 **F: Perfect! Well g'night m'lady. Sweet dreams.**

 **S.T.: Goodnight handsome.**

With that Fenix closed his scroll and let sleep take him.


	8. Chapter 8

**(A/N): I guess I should take this opportunity to say I don't own RWBY.**

 **Sorry it is taking a little longer than most would like to update this story. A lot is happening right now but I have a good idea where I want this story to go and it should be a decently long one.**

Chapter 8: A Sister Gained and a White Knight Saved

 _The horde was overpowering her. Beowulves were slashing at her but she was holding them off. All he could do is stand there helpless as a Boarbatusk charged him. He held up his hands and somehow grabbed onto the tusks. She turned and threw her axe killing the black pig-like Grimm. She then killed a King Taijitu by punching through its skull. That's when he heard the noise. The 'shrnk' that echoed as he watched the Deathstalker impale her._

' _Mom! No!' Was all he could think as he heard his younger self scream_

" _NOOOOO!"_

Fenix jolted up gasping for air. As he tried to control his breathing he noticed he was drenched in sweat. He just prayed he hadn't woken anybody up and drawn attention to himself. Taking in his surroundings it didn't look like he had woken anybody up. Noticing it was barely dawn with the sun just coming up he decided to get some fresh air and enjoy the sunrise. He exited his sleeping bag and walked out the doors that separated the ballroom from the balcony that overlooked the main square of Beacon Academy.

He was used to this. Fall asleep, have nightmare, wake up covered in sweat and shaking, and then repeat the next night. At least it wasn't happening every night like it used to. You would think years of this would make you grow some sort of resistance to it, but you don't exactly get used to seeing your mother die. Much less have it keep replaying vividly in your dreams. He stood looking over the railing trying to collect his thoughts when he heard the door behind him open.

"Fenix?" a soft voice called out to him. He turned to see Ruby peeking her head out from the doors. Fenix smiled to her but then turned away. He knew she wanted to help but he didn't exactly enjoy the idea discussing this topic. Of course he didn't have much of a choice in the matter because the sharp smacking sounds of bare feet walking across the concrete echoed throughout the balcony as they approached him. She came and leaned up against the railing next to him.

"Wana talk about it?"

"Nope."

"You sure?"

"I'm fine Ruby. This is actually a pretty common thing with me." He turned to see her looking at him with a very worried expression on her face. All he could do in response was give a defeated sigh and turn to look back over the courtyard. 'Might as well give her a few details to help her understand' he thought to himself.

"Ruby, what's your mother like?" He was surprised to hear her gasp. He turned back to her and it was his turn to look worried. A distraught look was on her face and she had tears starting to form in her eyes.

'Oh shit.'

"She… she is d-dead Fenix." She could only stumble it out at this point as she was trying very hard to keep from an all-out break down.

"Oh God Ruby I am so sorry." He grabbed her and brought her into a full embrace. She was surprised but that was pushed aside for her need to hug someone. She started sobbing into his chest. This was something he absolutely hated. He was not good with girls crying because it always got to him. This time was no exception as he noticed his eyes well up with tears.

"So is mine." He let that sink in as he felt her jerk with surprise. "My mother, father, and older sister, my entire family…gone. Grimm attacked my village when I was six." He looked down to meet a teary pair of silver eyes gazing back up at him. He didn't know how long she had been looking up at him because he was caught up in the emotion of his confession.

"I saw it happen. That's why I'm out here looking like hell. I had a nightmare about it and decided to come out here to spend a little quiet time." He looked down to see Ruby had stopped crying. He wiped her eyes to get rid of the excess tears and released her from the hug. They both turned to lean over the rail again. This time Fenix draped his arm around Ruby's shoulders in an attempt to help comfort her. After a bit of uncomfortable silence Ruby spoke up.

"Ya know I never knew anyone at home who felt the same kind of pain that Yang and I felt. Losing our mothers wasn't easy and Yang is still fixed on finding hers. But in a weird way it's kinda nice to find somebody else who understands that pain. Does that sound weird?"

"No Ruby it makes perfect sense. But you've never come across somebody who had lost a parent before? Where did you grow up?" Fenix had to admit that he found it strange that she seemed to have no friends who had lost family before. Especially with how hard life outside of the major cities of the kingdoms could be.

"Oh well no not really." She seemed to get really shy when she said that but her shyness reverted back to her bubbly self when she continued. "And I grew up on Patch!"

"That tiny island outside of Vale?"

"Yup!"

"Huh, well that makes sense now. Hey!" He didn't see her hand with how fast it moved to punch him. He just felt the sting on his left shoulder. She had somehow thrown his arm off of her shoulders and gave it a good jab before he could defend himself. The mischievous grin she was giving him also helped alert him to what she had done.

"Don't talk bad about my home."

"Sorry, I was just stating how it makes sense that you haven't run across anybody else who had lost parents. Living on a remote island like that had to limit the people you ran into."

"Oh. Well that's true I guess." She shamefully started poking her index fingers together looking like she was apologizing for upsetting him. He couldn't handle the level of cuteness.

"Oh dear God Ruby please stop."

"Huh?" She quirked her head to the side with a confused look on her face.

"That right there. Please stop. First you were giving me that kicked puppy look and now you are giving me the cute confused look. Seriously the levels of cuteness you possess know no bounds." She blushed at his observations of her adorableness.

"Sorry."

"And that! Right there! Stop apologizing for things when you didn't do anything wrong!" He pointed his finger at her trying to act all serious, but he couldn't contain his laughter. Even when he was trying to half-heartedly scold her he couldn't be mad at her. This girl had a dangerous power at her disposal, even if she didn't fully understand it. As if to prove his point he saw her clasp her hands in front her face in a begging pose and give a pout. This he could handle. He had been raised in an orphanage after all. The younger kids had tried to use their pouty face to get their way but Fenix had grown immune. Then he made eye contact.

The dreaded puppy dog eyes.

"Ah dang it please stop! I'm sorry just please stooooop!" He closed his eyes and looked away to break the hold she had on him.

"Mwahahahaha!" Her maniacal laughter stunned him. He slowly turned to look at her as she was beaming with a victorious smile.

"I use that on Yang, and my dad when I want to make them do something for me. Seventy percent of the time it works all the time!" With her smile still plastered on her face she brought her hands behind her back and rocked on her feet from heel to toe.

"With those numbers who can argue." Fenix chuckled to himself.

"Yup! But seriously was it that good of a pouty face?"

"Ruby you don't understand. I was raised in an orphanage. I've seen actual puppy faunus give me those puppy dog eyes and they weren't anywhere near as strong as the one you just gave me." She beamed a toothy smile at his praise of her abilities. He couldn't help but share her smile. Her happy attitude was contagious.

"Ruby in all seriousness I want you to know if you ever have a time when you need someone to talk to you can always count on me."

"That sounds just like what Yang tells me all the time." A lightbulb seemed to go off in her mind. Her mouth slowly formed a wide open mouthed smile and her eyes lit up. "Does that mean you are like my new big brother?" Her voice was just oozing with excitement as she said it. After pretending to think about it for a split second Fenix smiled.

"Sure, I can consider you my honorary little sister."

"You mean it?"

"Welcome to the Fall family." Fenix stuck his hand out for an actual handshake this time as if to seal the deal. Ruby closed her mouth but her grin remained.

"Welcome to the Rose/Xiao Long family!" She grabbed his hand and shook it eagerly. Fenix chuckled once again and then realized they had best start getting ready for the day.

"Well Ruby we probably need to start getting back in before Yang starts wondering what you are doing out here with a shirtless guy." He couldn't help but tease the girl. She blushed a little but quickly waved it away.

"Nah. You are my big brother so she has nothing to worry about."

"I can already tell this is the start of a beautiful friendship." As they turned to walk back into the ballroom Fenix playfully shoved her with his elbow. It threw her petite stature off balance which she retaliated with shoving him full force with both hands. He was thrown off balance as well and they shared a laugh again before he opened the door for her.

As they walked into the ballroom he noticed pockets of people had begun to wake up. Jaune was still unconscious and he could hear Yang lightly snoring once they got close. Ruby waved goodbye as he continued off to his spot to get his shower supplies from his bag. He always preferred morning showers to help him wake up. They also were a bit of a necessity when he woke up in a pool of his own sweat from nightmares. As he got his stuff together he noticed Weiss storming across the ballroom towards him with Pyrrha right behind her. He had no idea why she was coming after him but from the look on her face it wasn't going to be a pleasant conversation. Once they got to him Weiss pointed to his inhibitors that were still strapped to his forearms.

"Where did you get those?" She asked almost accusingly.

"Umm." Fenix pointed to the Schnee crest on the side of the gauntlets. He wasn't trying to be rude but he thought for a supposedly smart girl it was kind of a dumb question. For some reason this only seemed to infuriate her.  
"Where did you steal them from?"

"Whoa whoa. I did not steal these." Before he could go on she interrupted him.

"Those are state of the art training equipment in which the Schnee Company helped create! They just got out of the testing process and they haven't started production on these yet! The only way you could have a functional pair is that you stole them!" She was almost yelling at the end of her rant. This only succeeded in gathering unwanted attention from the already awake people in the room as well as waking some of the nearby students who were still trying to sleep.

"ssshhh! Keep your voice down princess. Some people are still trying to sleep." He motioned to Jaune who was remarkably still out cold. Weiss went to argue against Fenix's nickname for her but he held up his hand to silence her.

"There is another reason why I would have a pair of these. You see I was the tester. I worked for Atlas Military before coming here. As you more than anyone else should know, Atlas Military and the Schnee Dust Company are in good relations. As a gift for the work I did, the Schnee Dust Company allowed me to be the main one to test these. These are the original prototype with some minor modifications." The look on Weiss's face was that she wasn't convinced that was the entire truth. For the first time though, Pyrrha decided to make her presence known.

"That's rather impressive Fenix. Someone of our age working for the Atlesian Military is truly a remarkable feat. What work did you do for them?"

"Sorry Pyrrha but that is classified. I can maybe tell you later in the semester if everything goes to plan. Right now though, I would be divulging military secrets and Atlas doesn't take too kindly to that." Pyrrha nodded in understanding and Weiss just stuck up her nose and turned to walk away. Before she could get too far away Fenix called out to her in a hushed yell.

"You forgot something!" This piqued the two girls' interest and both turned towards Fenix. With a wicked smirk he continued.

"You forgot to say you were sorry princess." If looks could kill Fenix would have been the poster child for a victim. To say that her glare was anything less than murderous would be putting it lightly. She quickly turned on her heels and began stomping away again. Pyrrha mouthed an 'I'm sorry' from behind Weiss's back and then turned to follow. Fenix nodded to Pyrrha in acknowledgement.

He didn't plan to let Weiss off that easily though. She had been rude to him. If there was one thing Fenix couldn't stand it was poor manners. Digging into his past memories of dealing with Schnees he remembered something that was a sure fire method to set her off.

"Your father would be so disappointed." He whispered it loudly to make sure his voice made it to Weiss's ears. Much to his pleasure he watched as she froze mid-step. He quickly glanced around to see if anyone else had heard. Looking around he noticed Blake and the bear faunus that she was sleeping near both were staring wide eyed at him with a mixed look of shock and horror. Internally he winced realizing he may have said that a tad louder than he intended to.

Turning back he saw a white glyph with the Schnee family symbol propel Weiss directly at him. He stood his ground. He knew if he gave her the power to intimidate him she would never cease to abuse that power. She suddenly stopped right in front of him. Fists clenched ready to take a swing at him.

"What did you just say to me?" She attempted to shoot him her most menacing death glare she could. Pyrrha just raised her hands and started backing up as she silently excused herself from the tense situation. Fenix normally would have been more wary of further antagonizing her but he had a plan. He set it into motion, not giving her the pleasure of seeing his internal worry about his next words.

"I said, your father would be so disappointed. He was always one for acting properly no matter the circumstances. Although I must admit you clearly inherited his temper." He paused to let that information sink in. He watched as her face distorted into a new level of anger and her knuckles turned white from the pressure she was putting into clenching her fists.

"So you've met him before?"

"I have indeed. I did work for Atlas after all. Now I want you to hear me out here before you make a snap judgment about how to dispose of my mangled body once you are through with me." Weiss's look of anger diminished only slightly. Apparently his words had piqued her interest.

"Now I need to know something, and please take no offense to this. But is he as big of an insufferable asshole at home as he is in his business dealings?"

Followed by a female gasp from over Fenix's shoulder (he could only assume it was Blake) a shocked silence reigned between all parties of the conversation. Weiss's face of course had changed to a wide eyed stare at Fenix. As if she was trying to discern if it was her imagination of if he had really said that. After a few moments she straightened up and collected herself as she smoothed out her nightgown.

"No. He is actually nice to some people when he isn't at home." Fenix nodded and gave her a sad smile.

"I'm sorry. Doesn't sound like you lived the typical posh life after all."

"Not at all. I got material possessions anytime I wanted them. But that isn't exactly a good substitute for not having a father." He watched as her eyes glazed over from her attempts to not cry in public while talking about an obviously sensitive subject.

"So in a way I almost had the typical rich girl life you could say." Now Fenix knew he needed to cheer her up to seal the deal on earning her friendship. This tactic was not one he enjoyed using but it was effective in these types of people. 'Can't argue with results' he sarcastically thought to himself.

"Ah but do you remember two years ago at the Atlas Winter Ball?" She perked up at his mention of the dance.

"You were there?"

"I was. It was humorous to watch as your father would send suitor after suitor at you and you continually shot them down. He even tried to get me to come over to try my hand after his first choices didn't succeed." He chuckled and noticed he got the same reaction from Weiss.

"What stopped you?" She asked almost playfully.

"Well after you dumped punch on one's head and then literally froze another one in a giant block of ice, I didn't like my odds of coming out alive." This turned Weiss's chuckle into a full-fledged giggle. She tried to suppress it by putting her hand over her mouth. He allowed her to somber up a little before hitting her with the heavy stuff though.

"To be fair Weiss, I like to think your father did try at that dance to make you happy."

"And pray tell how you think that?" She returned to her serious looking scowl that seemed to be her normal look. On any other girl this face would be dubbed 'resting bitch face' but on Weiss for some reason it just looked normal. Fenix moved the conversation into the part where he his inner hopeless romantic attempted to see the good in every situation.

"It was obvious at the ball you were unhappy (the image of a slightly younger Weiss sitting in the corner in her formal dress filing her nails looking completely disinterested in the entire event flashed in his mind). I like to think your father sending those boys at you was his weak attempt to try and make your evening more enjoyable." She seemed to ponder his view for a second before dismissing it with a wave of her hand.

"That isn't like him. It was probably more along the lines of him setting up the ones whose parents made the most profitable partnerships with the wedding of their children." Fenix had to admit that one made more sense to him from what he knew of the Schnee businessman. It didn't hurt to be on the hopeful side of things though. After a slight pause Weiss continued.

"But I must say it is refreshing to hear somebody speak so openly about my father. Few people actually voice their opinions about how unpleasant he truly is to be around."

"I just call it like I see it princess." She frowned and furrowed her eyebrows at her now appointed nickname.

"Don't call me that." She spoke with a dead serious tone in her voice.

"Don't feel too special princess, I give nicknames to everybody. If you can suggest a better one for yourself I will consider it." Fenix crossed his arms and gave her a challenging look. She nodded in agreement and turned to walk away. This time Fenix actually let her leave so she could prepare for the day. He took it that they were on friendlier terms now than they had been the previous day.

He kneeled down and unstrapped his inhibitors from his forearms. After placing them in the briefcase and locking it he gathered his shower supplies. After a surprisingly uneventful shower he emerged from the bathroom wearing his normal battle attire minus his weapons. The same orange and blue sport shorts and athletic shirt he had been interviewed by Port and Ozpin in. He got back to his spot and noticed Jaune was sluggishly trying to get himself up.

"If you want to beat the breakfast rush you need to get moving." With that, Fenix tossed his damp towel and hit Jaune square in the face. It seemed to wake Jaune up as he took it from its stuck position on his face and tossed it back at Fenix. He then realized what the damp towel meant.

"You shower?"

"Yup."

"Nightmares again?"

"Yup."

"Sorry man."

"Eh, it's all good. I kinda got a good thing out of it this morning though." Jaune gave Fenix a confused look.

"I'll explain at breakfast. So get moving!" With a groan Jaune finally got up and started gathering his battle attire. After Jaune went to the bathroom to change and returned, the two made their way to the cafeteria. Once they finally got out of the line it left them only an hour to eat and gather their weapons before the initiation was supposed to begin. On their way to sit down though, they were ambushed.

"Big bro!"

"Urgh!" was all Fenix could get out as a pair of arms wrapped around his neck from behind effectively choking him. He was about to shoulder throw them to the ground but he stopped his screaming instincts when he realized who it was.

"Ruby… choking…" He gasped out while he miraculously balanced his tray and supported the petite girl on his back simultaneously.

"Oops, sorry!" She jumped off him and they both looked to see a seething red eyed Yang.

"What did she call you?" She directed her hate at the one who she thought was trying to steal her Ruby from her. Deciding he'd rather live today he decided to play peacekeeper rather than tease the girl in this situation.

"Let's sit down so we can explain." The four of them sat down at a table in the middle of the cafeteria. Ruby and Fenix recounted that morning's events to Jaune and Yang. As they did Jaune's demeanor turned into one of understanding while Yang just gradually relaxed.

"So what you're saying is you are basically fake adopting my little sister so she can become your little sister?" Yang asked Fenix after they were done telling their story.

"Basically yeah."

"You realize this means war right?" Yang raised an eyebrow to Fenix who in turn raised one back.

"How so?"

"War to see whO CAN BE THE BEST OLDER SIBLING EVER!" Yang started yelling mid-sentence. When she was done yelling she stood up to strike a dramatic pose on the table with her hands at her hips and her left leg planted triumphantly on the table top. Fenix mimicking her pose shouted back.

"I ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE! PREPARE FOR BATTLE!" Fenix shouted back at her effectively directing all attention in the crowded cafeteria to their group.

"BRING IT ON!" Yang clenched her fist and gave a determined look towards Fenix. After a few seconds of the two of them staring each other down they noticed how close their faces were. Yang broke first and immediately started laughing. Fenix then followed suite and the two of them sat down trying to control their laughter.

"I have no desire to dethrone the true older sibling Yang." Fenix said still trying to get his laughter under control. Once he did he continued. "Think of me as a second string player. You get the most attention and work but I'll be here to help out and spell you if need be."

"Thanks Fenix." Yang smiled at him.

"Yeah thanks big bro!" Ruby gave her signature beaming smile at him.

"So you've got another sister now huh? Think you will ever max out?" Jaune asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"It's not my fault your mom loves me like her second son and your sisters love me to death."

"Yeah some more than others." Jaune replied with an even larger hint of aggravation.

"Ok you are going to have to get over that someday Jaune." Fenix said as he gave Jaune a slightly evil smirk.

"Get over what?" Yang inquired as she could sense there was a juicy story here.

"Joan, Jaune's twin sister, had a bit of a thing for me a few years ago." Fenix's impish grin didn't diminish at all as he explained to Yang and Ruby.

"Had? Still does ever since you first defiled her." Jaune glared at Fenix.

"W-what does he mean by defiled?" Ruby asked now slightly scared of Fenix.

"We kissed." He stated flatly and shot an annoyed sideways glance at Jaune.

"That's it?" Yang asked now giggling at how opposite the two boys' reactions were right now. Jaune looked downright hostile while the other boy acted like he didn't give a care about the current conversation.

"She is my sister and you are my best friend! How do you think I would take that?" Jaune all but screamed at the fiery boy sitting next to him.

"I don't know. Maybe talked to us about it first before blowing it out of proportion? Seriously did you have to go tell your parents and exaggerate the situation to them?" Fenix tried to keep his voice calm but couldn't mask how he sounded a little frustrated with Jaune.

"Pffft. You really went and tattled on them?" Ruby was for some reason finding this whole situation hilarious.

"She's my sister!" Jaune defended.

"Jaune, you need to let it go. That was the day I left four years ago. She told me she wanted to give me something to remember her by. Before I could ask what she meant she dragged me to her room and planted a kiss on me. Now I will not lie and tell you I didn't kiss back but you have to believe me when I say it was a onetime thing. I am not after Joan. You are my friend and I was never your friend just to get closer to one of your sisters. I don't want you thinking that I would use our friendship like that." After Fenix finished Jaune just looked down at his plate in defeat. The four of them sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Yang tried to ease the tension.

"So do I need to worry about you going after Ruby?"

"Yaaaaaaaaang!" Ruby whined.

""Actually if anything you have to worry about Ruby going after me. That seems to be how the pattern goes if we are including how Jaune's sisters came onto me." Fenix grinned as he watched Yang shoot a 'don't you dare' look at Ruby. Ruby replied by simply giving a slightly disgusted look that read 'no way.' Fenix wasn't sure if he should be offended or thankful at their exchange.

"Wait sisters? As in plural?" Jaune halfway cried out.

"Oh for God's… do you think we can just have a normal breakfast?" Fenix tried to change the topic since he didn't want to explain this to Jaune. Thankfully fate was on his side that day. The table suddenly jarred as Nora plopped down right next to Jaune.

"Hiya pancake buddy!" Indeed Fenix forgot that Jaune had a short stack on his tray.

"Guess that a no." Fenix mumbled to himself. Jaune shot him a 'this isn't over' look. As Jaune turned to talk to Nora Fenix felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see a girl standing there with her tray.

She had pink hair that fell over the left side of her face so you could really only see half of it. From what you could see of her face she had cute features with turquoise eyes. She wore a ghost white skirt that had a lose fit and stopped just above the knees. Her skirt had a tail that consisted of a turquoise interior and pink trim while the exterior remained the same white color as her skirt. The tail fell down to her ankles and gave the look as if to give her lower half a cape of sorts. She had brown leather boots with a turquoise trim that stopped just short of the knees. Her top was a stylish sleeveless v-neck shirt with turquoise trim. The hem of the shirt was lined with a pattern of tiny pink hearts with a turquoise medic looking cross in the middle of the hearts. The 'V' stopped just above the point where she would be exposing any cleavage. The most noticeable part of her outfit was the white gloves that went all the way up her forearms and stopped just short of her elbows. The gloves had three pink lines on the exterior side that started at the wrist and ended where the gloves did below the elbows.

"I'm sorry to bother you but may I join you?" She asked Fenix with a slightly shy tone in her voice.

"Of course." Fenix stood up to greet her properly. She sat her tray down to sit next to Fenix and held her hand out. Fenix (of course) grabbed her hand and kissed the back of her hand.

"Fenix Fall." She adorned a slight blush but didn't stumble as she smiled and continued with her introduction.

"Alexis Hygieia." With that he released her hand and they both sat down to observe how Nora was eagerly questioning Jaune on the other side of Fenix.

"So what do you all know about this initiation today?" Alexis wasted no time in letting everybody know the main reason she had come to sit with them. With the mention of teams Nora quickly abandoned her conversation with Jaune to let everybody know that she intended on her friend Ren and her to be on a team together. Of course she invited everybody else at the table to join in if they could imitate a sloth call.

As she was demonstrating the designated call of the wild sloth, Nora's boyfriend Ren came over to calm her down. Jaune, now free, exchanged greetings with Alexis along with Yang and Ruby. The now group of seven turned to small talk about the upcoming initiation. They finished exchanging what little information they each knew about it and went to the locker room. They only had fifteen minutes before they needed to report for initiation. Jaune had apparently lost where his locker was so he was wondering the room looking for it as the rest of them got to theirs.

Fenix grabbed his swords and gave them a quick check. Everything appeared to be combat ready so he sheathed them and strapped them to his back in their normal 'X' pattern with the hilts pointing down. He then turned to his utility belt. Ammo clips were fully stocked and secured safely in the pouch on the backside of the belt. Dust vials were safely secured in their containers and magnetically attached to the belt on both hip sides. Lastly he got his shades out and put them in their resting spot in his hair atop his forehead. After he had finished his pre-game ceremony he checked to see what everybody else was doing.

Yang was talking to Ruby about how she needed to break out of her shell. Jaune was still looking for his locker. Blake was done and already leaving the locker room. Nora and Ren must have already left. Alexis was talking to the big bear faunus with a huge wicked looking sword. A couple other people were making small talk or lazing around. His eyes fell on Weiss and Pyrrha. Weiss was asking Pyrrha what she thought about the two of them teaming up.

"That sounds grand." Fenix could hear the false enthusiasm in the Spartan's voice. Weiss had been hanging onto Pyrrha since he first met them but it seemed the later was too nice to get out of the situation. He was trying to figure out how to rescue the warrior girl as Weiss was making weird faces and acting like she had just completed a big scheme. He noticed Jaune, now approaching the girls.

'Well this could work out so I don't have to intervene.' Fenix thought to himself. Although he was sure Jaune was going to find a way to force his hand.

"You know what else is great? Me. Jaune Arc. Nice to meet you." Of course Jaune had to start off the worst possible way. Hitting on a girl who seemed to be annoyed by his mere presence.

"Ugh you again?" Yep annoyed is exactly how Weiss's voice sounded.

"Nice to meet you, Jaune!" Pyrrha stepped into Jaune's line of sight so he couldn't miss her.

'Oh no way.' A gorgeous warrior girl taking an interest in Jaune of all people? Fenix couldn't believe his friend's luck.

"Yeah, yeah." And there went Fenix's awe at his Jaune's good fortunes. His denseness still shining brightly as he pretty much just brushed Pyrrha off and stepped closer to Weiss.

"So Weiss, couldn't help but overhear your fondness of me the other day." Fenix wasn't sure whether to go over and smack his friend upside the head or just laugh and enjoy the train wreck that was currently unfolding in front of him. Luckily his decision was made for him as Alexis and the bear faunus appeared suddenly by his side.

"He does realize who he is talking to right?" Alexis asked Fenix.

"I don't think he has a clue." Fenix chuckled to Alexis as he kept his eyes fixed on Jaune, Weiss, and Pyrrha. As if to prove his point, Jaune moved towards Pyrrha.

"Well, hot stuff, play your cards right and maybe you could join up with the winning team." Pyrrha seemed to blush a little at Jaune's boldness but Weiss was having none of it. She quickly stepped in between the two of them. She put a hand on each one of them and gently pushed the two apart.

"Jaune, is it? Do you have any idea who you are talking to?" Fenix looked to Alexis and her big friend and motioned towards the group they were observing. His gesture suggested what he had told the two about Jaune not having the foggiest of notions who he was talking to was about to be proven.

"Not in the slightest, snow angel." Fenix noticed how the bear faunus scoffed at Jaune's nickname of Weiss.

"This is Pyrrha." Weiss motioned with her hand over her shoulder towards Pyrrha.

"Hello again!" Pyrrha waved to Jaune.

"Pyrrha graduated top of her class at Sanctum." Weiss stated matter-of-factly.

"Never heard of it." Fenix nearly face palmed at how dense his friend was. Weiss just scoffed at him and continued.

"She's won the Mistral Regional Tournaments four years in a row! A new record!"

"The what?" At Jaune's reaction to that Weiss looked completely dumbfounded for a moment. She scanned the locker room looking for somebody to help her out and her gaze fell on Fenix. He was trying his hardest to not show his bewilderment with the situation. He sighed as he noticed Weiss's look of plea for help settled on him. He cupped his left hand to resemble a bowl and used his right hand to act out as if he was eating a bowl of cereal. Weiss got the message but also seemed to be enraged that this would be the only way that somebody would recognize the famous Pyrrha Nikos. She started flailing her arms up and down and yelled.

"She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box!" At Weiss's outburst Jaune just gasped.

"That's YOU?!" Fenix couldn't take anymore and turned to speak with Alexis and her big friend.

"So as you can see my friend is a bit of a moron at times. But his heart is in the right place and he is a really good guy. So who's your friend Alexis?" Both turned to the massive bear faunus. He stood well above everyone else in the room at around seven foot. The only reason everybody could tell he was a bear faunus was because of the brown bear ears poking out of his equally brown hair. He wore a full set of teal colored plate armor lined with golden trim and decorative patterns on it. The huge zweihander sword strapped across his back is what really caught Fenix's attention though. The sword had an absurdly thick blade. It also had outward notches about one fourth of the way up the blade if your traveled from the hilt to the tip. Fenix noted the notches served as a sort of parrying hook to tangle someone's weapon up in so he could twist his blade and disarm his opponent. As Fenix was checking out the faunus's weapon he didn't notice the big bear giving him a rather nasty scowl.

"I did not actually catch you name either." Alexis said and turned her head to direct her comment to the big bear. He turned to address her and his scowl noticeably softened but did not disappear.

"That is because I did not give it. I would give it to you but I would rather not where there are those who would listen in." He said with a condescending tone and a thick Scandinavian accent. He gave Fenix a quick glare, then turned on his heels, and walked out of the locker room without another word.

"Oh so he heard that last night huh? That's my fault." He explained to Alexis as she looked rather confused on what just happened.

"I was about to say he was not like that before I started talking to you." Alexis now gave Fenix a questioning look.

"It's just a misunderstanding and I will explain myself later to him." Alexis nodded in response as the two turned their attention back to Jaune and the girls.

"Sounds like Pyrrha's on board for Team Jaune. Spots are filling up quick! Now, I'm not supposed to do this, but maybe I could pull some strings, find a place for you. What do you say?" Fenix decided he had allowed Jaune enough time to pester the heiress. He took a step towards the group and noticed Pyrrha had a frown on her face. He also noticed her hand had traveled to her back and was gripping her tri-functional weapon. Fenix turned his walk into a sprint towards the group. He knew Pyrrha seemed to have an eye for his dorky friend but it looked like she was about to spear him. He didn't want to see what a jealous warrior would do to Jaune especially with his back turned to her.

"All right, that's a bit too close! Pyrrha, a little help, please?" Weiss was begging for somebody to bail her out at this point. Fenix had noticed Pyrrha already had her weapon drawn and aiming it, in javelin form, at Jaune.

Fenix changed his direction. Instead of moving to stop Pyrrha from initially throwing the spear, he moved to catch the spear before it would hit Jaune. Said boy was starting to turn around to look at what Weiss meant by Pyrrha helping her. Fenix heard the click of something triggering within the javelin. He was now two steps away from Jaune. Weiss had noticed Fenix coming and had already moved back away from Jaune. This allowed Fenix the needed room to stop the javelin.

The clicking noise he had heard must have been a propulsion mechanism at the back of the spear lit up. Fenix sprung into his sideways flip. As the spear left the Spartan's hand he flipped his legs over his body keeping his legs straight and together. His body was inverted and directly in front of Jaune as the spear made its way for what Fenix assumed was Jaune's shoulder. Fenix's momentum carried his body as the tip of the spear barely missed driving into his chest. As his body and the spear both continued their respective paths, Fenix brought his right arm closer to him as the shaft of the spear was now up against his side. His arm snapped to his side and trapped the javelin up against himself. The new momentum caught Fenix out of his barrel roll flip and drove him backwards while still rotating. With his right arm being used to trap the spear, he stuck his left arm out to help steady his landing. He landed with his left hand, left foot, and right knee on the ground in an almost super hero landing. He looked up to meet Pyrrha's shocked eyes.

"A bit much to get someone's attention don't you think?" Fenix quirked an eyebrow and shot a teasing grin to her. A pink hue graced her cheeks as she nervously grasped her hands behind her back. Fenix then stood up and flipped the javelin into his hand. He then lightly tossed it back to the Spartan and she easily caught it. She returned it to its resting spot on her back with her shield.

"Hmph." Weiss glanced to Fenix before she stuck up her nose and walked by Jaune without looking at him. Pyrrha followed her to help get her out of this awkward situation.

"I'm sorry. It was nice meeting you though!" She patted Jaune's shoulder as she walked by and out of the locker room.

"What just happened?" Jaune asked Fenix as he turned to face his friend.

"Ah Jaune if you only knew what that was about." Fenix shook his head at his oblivious friend. How could he not see how the Spartan warrior seemed to take a liking to him?

"Having some trouble there lady killer?" Ruby and Yang had apparently made their way over and were standing behind Jaune. Yang was enjoying poking fun at Jaune. The boy just rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I don't understand. My dad said all women look for is confidence. Where did I go wrong?" Ruby grabbed Jaune's hand and helped him to his feet. 'Well the first part you went wrong was taking any of your dad's advice' Fenix thought to himself.

"Snow angel probably wasn't the best start." Yang said as she flipped her hair and walked past the other two so she could stand by Fenix. A bit too close for his comfort but he didn't notice immediately since he was inwardly agreeing with Yang's statement.

"Yeah but thanks to Fenix it didn't go as bad as it could've." This snapped Fenix back to the conversation as he just nodded at Jaune's appreciation.

"That was quite an impressive move Fenix." Alexis commented as she joined the group.

"Yeah! That was awesome big bro!" Ruby's face was full of awe towards the fire wielder. Fenix was flattered by Ruby and Alexis's praises but he just waved them off.

"Just helping my friend not get speared. By the way, think you learned to not mess with Weiss?" Fenix asked Jaune afraid of what he thought Jaune's response would be.

"Ah she's just playing hard to get. If I keep after her she will admit she has feelings for me." Fenix and the three girls all face palmed at the knight's obliviousness. Before Fenix could chastise Jaune anymore the speakers blared an announcement.

"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation? Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately."

"Come on Jaune." Ruby grabbed Jaune's hand and started leading him out of the locker room. Fenix stood in front of Yang to stop her killing intent on somebody holding hands with her little sister. Surprisingly enough she didn't seem to mind.

"So hot stuff you ready?" Yang winked at Fenix as they started following Ruby and Jaune towards the exit.

"Compared to some of my training, this will be a breeze." Fenix stated confidently as the group got out of the door and was walking towards the cliffs.

"Oh really? Do tell." Yang then latched onto Fenix's left arm pressing her womanly features up against him. Fenix just glanced at Yang. His look showing she was getting on his nerves but that only egged her on. Before she could start in Fenix turned to Alexis.

"Would you like the other arm?" By the look of shock on her face she was apparently not expecting that offer.

"W-what?"

"Well since Yang has this arm and Ruby has Jaune, it would be a shame to make you walk unescorted." He offered her his right arm and smiled to her. His smile offered no bad intentions and Alexis concluded it was him just trying to be nice. She accepted the arm but didn't lean on him as Yang was doing.

"Ooooh already got two gorgeous girls on your arms and we haven't even made it past initiation yet." Yang cooed but Fenix saw it for the teasing it was. He just rolled his eyes and smiled back at her. That was the reaction she wanted apparently as they just made more small talk about the upcoming initiation.

As they approached the cliffs he caught a few of the guys giving him hateful glares but he just brushed them off. As they arrived the blonde professor who had greeted them via hologram on the ship as they first arrived gave them the instructions to each take a spot on one of the metal squares. Yang took the one next to Ruby and motioned for Fenix to take the one on the other side of her. Fenix was going to but a large ginger haired boy basically ran to it and gave Fenix a challenging glare as he stepped on it. Yang's eyes flickered red for a brief moment but a smile from Fenix was enough to calm her down. He walked to the far end of the line and took an empty spot next to Blake. Alexis took the empty one next to Fenix. As the rest of the platforms were then filled with the rest of the students the Headmaster began his speech.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest." Fenix could only assume the massive tree infested looking wilds behind the headmaster was the spoken of Emerald Forest. As the Headmaster finished the blonde professor spoke up.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of 'teams.' Well allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… today." Fenix noticed Ruby looking uncomfortable down on the other side of the line of students. As if the two were perfectly in synch, the Headmaster picked back up on the explanation.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." Fenix sensed a 'but' coming on though.

"That being said, the first person you make eye contact after landing will be your partner for the next four years." Yup there's the but he was expecting. Seems a little odd to say you need to work well with somebody and then leave it to chance on who the partners will be. Something told him there was more to it than what they were being told. After noticing many of the group having a wide variety of reactions (mainly Ruby screaming and Nora telling Ren she told him so) the students calmed down and allowed the instructors to continue.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path… or you will die." 'Good to know he has such a high opinion of our abilities' Fenix thought to himself.

"You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must chose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?" Fenix then heard the platform beneath him click and it dawned on him. 'They are going to throw us into the frickin' forest?' Fenix thought to himself.

"Good! Now, take your positions." 'Yup they are gonna launch us into a Grimm infested forest just to see how good we can fight.' Fenix rolled his eyes and shook his head as he prepared himself.

He wasn't worried about himself but he was extremely worried about Jaune. How the hell was Jaune going to be able to fight Grimm off if they jumped him in the forest? HOW THE HELL IS HE GOING TO SURVIVE THE LANDING?! As Fenix was internally screaming he barely caught that Alexis was the first one thrown into the forest via the launch platforms. He watched her go and then realized something as he covered his eyes and turned to look at Blake.

"I really hope she is wearing something underneath that skirt." Blake just smirked and crouched down to prepare for her own launching.

"Good luck Fenix."

"Good luck Black Panther." He smirked and heard his platform click. Expecting to be launched he crouched and put his hands behind his back gripping his swords.

Only for nothing to happen.

"Huh, guess mine is broken." He was mildly disappointed. He expected to be thrown in to the air like a badass and go find a partner in dazzling style. Before Blake could react, her platform clicked, and she was launched into the air. As the rest of the students were launched one by one into the forest Fenix stayed on his platform. Jaune was the last one launched. Everyone else launched seemed to have some control to their flight plan. Jaune just flipped end over end to show he had no idea what to do in this situation. Fenix knew he needed to act fast if he wanted to help Jaune out so he got the professors' attention.

"Professors! My launch pad must have malfunctioned!" The Blonde professor turned with a slight shock to see him still standing there.

"Ah well I can throw you myself if that is what you prefer Mr. Fall." She put her oversized scroll away and grabbed a riding crop. Fenix was slightly surprised that that was her weapon of choice.

He didn't have time to think as Jaune was nearing the apex of his journey through the air. He needed to move to save his friend and he needed to move now. A new tactic he had been perfecting popped into his mind and he grew a mischievous looking grin.

"Actually, professor, I have my own way to get there."

 **(A/N): Well you have met the original crew and some new ones as well. I changed the Pyrrha pinning Jaune to the lockers and will change a few things here and there. As always please favorite and review this! Let me know what you guys think so far and thanks for the support! I would like some ideas for some cover art if ya'll have any suggestions.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry guys this took far too long to get out. Work and home lives have been pretty hectic as of late. Rest assured this one is not getting abandoned anytime soon! Still looking for ideas on artwork if you have any!**

Chapter 9: The Forging of Team FABL

The blonde professor went to question just what Fenix meant by having his own way. Before she could though, Fenix flicked his shades down to cover his eyes and turned to run at the edge of the cliffs. As he reached the edge he jumped off and leaned into the most eloquent swan dive he could. Soon his dive was in full effect as he hurled towards the ground face first.

Now this new tactic he had only recently tested wasn't exactly refined. As a matter a fact he had only attempted it a few times but he had the basic fundamentals down. He did a quick mental checklist as he activated his semblance causing his lit eyes to spew flames from the corners of his sunglasses. Palms facing behind? Check. Soles of the feet angled for optimal control? Check. Focus the power of his aura into the palms of his hands and soles of his feet? Check. Now time to show the professors and his fellow students something they probably haven't seen yet.

He forced high intensity flames to sprout from the four mentioned points of interest and poured the power of his aura into them. The heat alone from the four flames caused Fenix to increase his decent towards the ground at an alarming rate. He quickly turned his palms to an angle where they were facing a more downwards angle so to correct his course. He slowly started pulling up, but he still cut it much closer than he had anticipated. He gained control just in time to pull up and skim the top of the taller trees of the forest.

"WHOO!" He screamed to let off some of the adrenaline pumping through his veins at the close call. He then noticed Jaune a ways off and made his path so he would intercept him before he came uncontrollably crashing to the ground.

Back at the cliffs an astonished Glynda Goodwitch and a slightly smirking Ozpin watched as the boy pulled off his showmanship of aura control. Glynda turned to see Ozpin's look and realized something.

"You knew he could do that didn't you?" At this Ozpin's smirk grew into a complete smile.

"I had my suspicions he had developed that method. Although I figured he wasn't going to be showing it to us this early on until it was refined."

"You mean this is his raw version of this talent?" Glynda tried to hide the small amount of astonishment she had at the abilities of this new student.

"Now Glynda, we will learn in due time about young Mr. Fall. For now let's see what he and the rest of his classmates are capable of." He then sipped his coffee to show he was done with this discussion. Glynda, knowing Ozpin better than anyone else, accepted his statement and turned to observe the Fall boy that she had heard about already from Ozpin and Port.

Fenix was now approaching Jaune. As he got close he realized he hadn't exactly thought how he was going to catch Jaune seeing as he couldn't take his hands away. He was using them as stabilizers and if he touched Jaune while the flames were still being used he was sure they would severely burn his friend.

He was snapped out of his rescue planning as he reached Jaune. Still flipping end over end, his friend didn't notice him until he called out his name. Jaune's eyes shot wide open in surprise.

"FeEeEeniiIIIIX?" Jaune's volume changing in his voice was due to his not being able to control his flipping body that was now plummeting towards the ground.

"Alright here is what we are going to do." Fenix paused because he really didn't know what they were going to do. As if on cue, some warning signal started blaring inside his head and he barrel rolled to avoid whatever was coming at him. In the middle of his roll he noticed a red looking missile pass underneath him and snag Jaune. Fenix watched as he noticed the object he recognized grab Jaune and change his course mid flight towards another part of the forest. He couldn't do anything but hover and watch as the javelin of a certain Spartan warrior took Jaune to a tree and pin him up against it. At the worst he would have from the surprise landing was a headache. Fenix couldn't help but smile at the fortune of the situation as he turned and flew towards a rather tall tree that had a red figure standing on it. As he started towards her he heard a very faint yell from behind him coming from Jaune.

"Thank you!"

"I'm sorry!" Pyrrha yelled back in response and waved towards the area where her spear had taken Jaune. At this point Fenix had arrived at the giant tree and he stopped to hover in front of her branch. Her look of surprise melted into a challenging look. He assumed she thought he was going to challenge her for the rights to Jaune's partnership.

She would be mistaken in that assumption.

"Take good care of him ok?" He smiled to her and she smiled back.

"Thank you."

"Don't sweat it. Just so you know he is very dense so you may have to spell it out for him." He shot her a teasing look and took off straight up into the air. He missed seeing Pyrrha's blush but he knew it was there.

He ascended until he felt he was at a comfortable height where he could observe the whole forest. He hovered above the forest getting a perfect aerial view of the area. He turned so that his back was facing the cliffs the first years (minus himself) had been launched from. Sure enough, about 2 klicks away to the northeast was what appeared to be some sort of structure. It was barely noticeable but at his altitude he was able to spot it. A gray spot indicating refined stone in the middle of a forest. That had to be it.

"There you are." He then leaned forward to guide his flight path towards the structure. He decided to descend to tree top level so he could avoid attracting any Nevermores in the area. He assumed he could take them. Getting into a dogfight in the air was not something he was keen on at the moment though. He was still working on the fine details of this flying thing after all.

He arrived at his destination without incident. Something he considered a win in his book. The structure turned out to be just some old ruins. To him it looked like it used to be the base of a tower. What remained of the support columns formed a half circle. Surprisingly enough, there where pedestals within the structure of the ruins itself. Half of the pedestals had something golden on them while the other half had something black on them. A squeal from below him interrupted his observations of the structure. He peered down to see what had caused the commotion.

A small heard of Boarbatusk were in the clearing along with the ruins and had noticed him still hovering at the edge of said clearing. This whining emanating from the sources of heat that allowed him to fly and hover made it difficult to be stealthy. Now the herd had noticed him. Not that he really minded that. He could use a good warm up to whatever else this initiation would throw at him.

The Boarbatusk were the only lower ranked Grimm that primarily stuck to open spaces. They tended to stick to fields and busy themselves with munching on whatever plants were in the area. It made no sense to anybody though since all Grimm were well known carnivores that delighted in destroying settlements and feasting on the inhabitants. Beowolves tended to stick to the forest as did Ursi. Deathstalkers liked dark spaces such as caves and narrow rocky valleys. Nevermore seemed to just be everywhere but in his experiences he found the largest concentrations on the sides of cliffs. Griffons tended to stick to the high altitude areas such as mountains but they could also be found in large cliffs as well. King Taijitu liked to burrow in the ground but mainly around thick brush. Finally the Goliaths were similar to the Boarbatusks in the sense that they liked wide open spaces but it was on a much larger scale than just clearings or fields. Of course Fenix didn't know all about Grimm because there were ancient ones hidden away in the world. Also the fact that the Grimm seemed to constantly be evolving into new species made it particularly difficult for somebody to know everything about the beasts.

Back to the situation at hand, Fenix knew that Boarbatusk were one of the weakest level of Grimm. A heard of what looked like about fifteen would be no problem for him. He lowered himself towards the ground and when he was close enough he killed his semblance. As he fell the Boarbatusk began to charge across the clearing at him. As soon as his feet touched the ground he ducked into a forward roll while simultaneously drawing both his swords Veloces and Cornibus. With the Boarbatusk still a safe distance away Fenix slapped Cornibus's hilt to the tip of Veloces blade. The swords began their mecha-shifting and soon the transformation was complete. In his hands was no longer a pair of swords but an MK-14 marksman rifle with an advanced combat optical gunsight (ACOG scope) attached to it.

He was a sniper through and through. His accuracy with his rifles was something he took immense pride in. With three pulls of the trigger he scored three headshots and three kills on the charging herd. The armor in the boar like Grimm's was heavy on their backs but on their heads it was thin enough for higher caliber rifles to penetrate. In the interest of self-preservation, the Boarbatusks curled their bodies and rolled end over end towards him. The special move that all Boarbatusks were known to have allowed their armor to protect them from his shots. A flaw in this design was that it also made their movement patterns extremely predictable.

Picking one of the blue dust vials off his belt he slammed it into the right side of his rifle in a slot that was designed for it. The white lines that had been on the sword now lined the barrel of the gun. As he twisted the vial the dust emptied into the weapon. Starting from the point of origin of the dust vial, the white lines turned to blue signaling his weapon how had the power of the dust. Fenix designed it so this particular vial would only grant his weapon its power for three shots before it reverted back to its standard form of ammunition. He aimed in front of the nearest three Boarbatusks and fired.

The dust powered shots exploded into spikes of ice in front of the charging beasts. If he would have tried to shoot them in their bodies their momentum would have just carried them through the ice. Shooting in front of them caused them to ram into the ice, still shattering the blockade. However, instead of being able to power through it unaffected, it caused them to be thrown up into the air at odd angles. As they lost control the Boarbatusks abandoned their end over end spinning in an effort to gain back some sense of control. This move left their unarmored undersides completely exposed to Fenix. Something Fenix had planned on.

He fired three more shots. The first two rounds pierced their targets on the unprotected chest of the Grimm boars. They fell to the ground and struggled before succumbing to death. The third one caught under the jaw and traveled upwards through the skull of the Grimm, killing it instantly. The rest of the herd kept up their spinning assault by going around the remains of the ice barriers.

Another weakness of the spinning form of the Boarbatusk is that head on their armor is near impossible to penetrate. From the sides, however, they are completely exposed. As the herd was turning to continue towards Fenix, their sides were exposed for easy targets. As he finished firing at the three Boarbatusks that had been sent airborne, he turned his attention to them and dropped two more before they could align themselves properly. Now the herd was only down to seven as they bore down on him.

Fenix stopped firing his rifle as they continued to approach. At this angle and this distance he stood more a chance of a deflection damaging him than doing any solid damage to the Grimm. He flicked his rifle to the right sharply. This flick was the trigger for his MK-14 rifle to mecha-shift back into his dual langseax swords. As the shift ended and he held his swords he switched his semblance on. Eyes ablaze, he began pouring his aura from his hands into his swords. The white lines along the blades began turning a fiery red beginning at the base of the blade and ending at the tip.

He smirked as the first Boarbatusk reached him. Still spinning the soulless beast must have thought Fenix would not be able to stop it. Much to its surprise, Fenix had baited it, as his now fire powered sword cut through the pig's thick armor with little effort. Without his aura power up his swords would not be able to pierce the Grimm's armor. With his fire semblance allowing his swords to have this extra ability, he bisected the first Boarbatusk horizontally with relative ease.

As the two halves of the recently slain Grimm flopped behind him the remaining six pressed their attack. Fenix took note of their surprisingly close knit formation and made his plan. 'Take one and two, let three pass, take four, five pass, take six.' That was the pattern he decided fit the approaching formation best. He then rushed to meet his attackers head on.

The first one of the group was met with a forehand swing from Veloces. Similar to the fate of the former Boarbatusk, this one was sliced in half. The second Grimm, following the path of the one before it, was just as quickly dealt with. Fenix spun so that Cornibus sliced through the second one with a backhanded swing. Using his forward momentum, Fenix continued to spin until he was facing the oncoming attack again. Not slowing down, he put his right foot forward and used it to propel him to jump over the third Grimm. As he landed, he immediately used Veloces to slice the fourth member of the attacking party. His downward swing hit the front of the spinning Boarbatusk and surprisingly decapitated it. Not having any time to marvel at his accomplishment of somehow decapitating a spinning Boarbatusk, he juked to his left. The fifth Grimm sped past him right where he had been just a split second before. The final Grimm charged him head on. Fenix brought both Veloces and Cornibus in front of him. He placed the blades side by side against each other making it look like he had one thick sword instead of two. He raised the swords over his head and brought them down in a swing that would be similar to how a lumberjack would swing an axe. The powerful swing split the Boarbatusk in half. The two still spinning halves separated and continued to roll away passing on both sides of Fenix. He turned his semblance off and stood upright. As he did he slapped Cornibus on top of  
Veloces and shifted his weapons into its MK-14 rifle mode again.

The two remaining Boarbatusks were turning to come back at Fenix. Still in their spinning technique it their turns were wide. Their vulnerable sides were now exposed and Fenix lined up his shots. Two pulls of the trigger resulted in the last two Grimm falling. As their bodies already began disintegrating Fenix checked to make sure no other Grimm were in the area. Seeing no other threats, Fenix reloaded a new clip into his rifle and then flicked it to shift his weapon back into his twin swords. Sheathing them he walked towards the ruins to resume his inspection of it.

As he approached the ruins he remembered that the Headmaster had specifically instructed them to find a partner THEN retrieve the relics. He didn't want to risk failing the initiation for simply not following directions. He decided to sit and relax in the clearing until somebody arrived. If he was lucky a person who didn't already have a partner would be the first to happen across him. He lazed around for fifteen minutes until some noise on the edge of the clearing caught his attention.

It's not often you hear a Beowulf whimper like a scared puppy. It's even more rare to find the Beowulf in question come hurdling out of the woods at your as if it had been thrown like a frisbee. Fenix watched as the tossed Grimm hit one of the pillars of the ruins. A loud snap signaled that the beast's back was now broken. More rustling from where the Beowulf had been thrown from made Fenix revert his attention back to the forest. He walked to the edge of the clearing cautiously with his right hand on Veloces in its sheath. As he reached the edge he heard the sound of heavy armored footsteps approaching. He relaxed his grip on his sword and gazed up as a familiar large frame in teal armor stepped through the shrubs.

The bear faunus gave Fenix a cold stare. Fenix didn't even attempt to return the glare knowing it would only make this situation worse than it already was. Instead he just went for the classic greeting. He stuck his hand out to offer a handshake to his new partner.

"Name's Fenix Fall. Whats yours?" The faunus just evilly grinned and grabbed Fenix's hand. Instead of shaking it though he squeezed rather forcefully as if trying to crush the hand of the fire wielder. Fenix winced at first but then returned the evil grin as his eyes lit up with fire. He channeled his semblance into his grasped hand, causing a flame to ignite in his palm. The big bear yelped out in pain as he released his hold on Fenix. He began waving his hand around trying soothe the burning sensation still stinging his hand.

"I wouldn't try that again if I were you partner." Fenix said smugly. The faunus just resumed his spiteful glare at Fenix. He swore he heard the bear growl under his breath at him. Fenix just sighed at rubbed his temples in slight irritation at this situation.

"You know our next four years together would probably be a lot easier if I knew your name and why you seem to have a vendetta towards me." The glaring continued for a few moments before the faunus took a deep breath.

"Liam. My name is Liam Randgrid. And I despise you for being a racist to my kind." Fenix figured it was something along those lines so he wasn't too surprised by Liam's anger towards him.

"Liam, I am not a racist. I actually grew up pretty much surrounded by faunus. What I'm assuming you heard last night between me and Blake was because I wanted to ask her something that I figured she didn't want anyone to know about. So I played it safe and got her where nobody could hear our conversation. Was I wrong in my assumption that you could hear us from where we were before we left the room?" The big bear looked to be thinking if what Fenix said made sense to him.

"How do I know you are telling me the truth?" Fenix just rolled his eyes at the distrusting nature of his new partner. He really hoped this wouldn't be a normal thing between the two of them for the next four years.

"You don't, but you can ask Blake when we get back. She will vouch for me. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to continue with our initiation so could we choose a relic now?" He motioned towards the ruins. Liam took a moment but then grunted an affirmative. The two newly formed partners walked side by side into the middle of the ruins.

"If I may make a suggestion?" The only response he got was Liam crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at him. Fenix just walked over and picked up a piece.

"I say we take the golden queen." Liam raised his eyebrow even more.

"And why do you say that?"

"Well although not the most important piece on the board, the queen is undoubtedly the most powerful. I think we should take it to send a message to the other first years. Something along the lines of 'we know we are the strongest and we dare you to challenge us.'" After a few silent moments Liam's scowl turned to an approving smirk.

"I like your style fire wielder. I approve, we shall take the golden queen." Fenix nodded in appreciation of Liam saying the first positive words towards him since he met him. He took the empty dust vial from his belt and popped the top off. The chess piece fit perfectly inside it as he put the top back on. He clipped it safely onto his belt and turned back to Liam.

"So, ready to pass this test?"

"Indeed I am! It appears we shall be the first to finish."

"Don't jinx us like that." Fenix inwardly cursed Liam for doing that. Now something was bound to happen to mess it all up.

The trek back to the cliffs was surprisingly uneventful. The pair made small talk but for the majority of the trip walked in silence since they didn't wish to attract excess attention. A few Grimm appeared here and there but no packs or herds. Just a few lone Beowulves and an Ursa so there was no real threat to the two huntsmen in training. They were also surprised to not see any of their other potential classmates on their way back to the cliffs. They noticed the tell-tale signs of fighting here and there as well as the sounds of gunfire in the distance, but nobody seemed to be in their direct vicinity.

They reached a clearing at the bottom of Beacon Cliffs and noticed a large bridge and a temple looking structure at the base of the cliffs. Both shared a questioning glance to each other as both knew for certainty that this structure was not here when they were launched out at the beginning of the initiation. Also they noted the odd absence of any Grimm in the area. Deciding not to question it, the pair crossed the bridge and discovered there was no path to get up the cliffs. Liam smirked at Fenix as he jumped up the cliff and latched onto the side. He began climbing up showcasing his brute strength as Fenix just watched from the bottom. After he was a good ways up, he called back to Fenix mockingly.

"Do you need me to come back and carry you up?" Fenix sparked his semblance and once again returned Liam's smirk. Flooding his aura into his hands and feet he again took off flying. He slowly ascended and stopped to hover at an even height with Liam.

"I'll wait for you at the top." He blasted upwards and heard Liam cursing at him in some foreign tongue. He quickly reached the top only to discover there was a rather large flat area that served as an almost natural arena. The part where he came up from the cliff was the only open end as the rest of it was surrounded by more cliff walls that continued up to the true top. Fenix landed on the edge of this natural arena to look back. He was slightly surprised to see the ruins in plain view.

What really surprised him was the large Nevermore Grimm with what appeared to be a spec of red falling off of it. Without any delay Fenix slapped his swords together. This time he put Veloces' hilt to Cornibus' tip. Instead of forming his MK-14 marksman rifle, this combination shifted into his much heavier AX-50 sniper rifle. This large fifty caliber sniper rifle gave Fenix ridiculous range with a lot of stopping power behind his shots. This rifle was a bolt action compared to his semi-auto MK-14 so it had a slower firing rate.

Once his heavy weapon was finished mecha-shifting, Fenix peered through his scope to find that the red spec that was falling from the Nevermore was actually Ruby. 'How the heck she got on that thing in the first place is beyond me.' Then, out of nowhere, Jaune came crashing into Ruby mid-flight and they both went crashing into the trees. Fenix could still see through his scope that the two landed awkwardly but appeared to be safe. After making sure the two were fine Fenix pushed a button on the side of his rifle and a component of the barrel popped one section on each side slightly outward. They then folded down to create a bi-pod to help stabilize the rifle for maximum accuracy. Fenix went into a prone position and set up his rifle. With a quick adjustment of his sights he then scoped out the rest of the situation.

Yang and Blake were already at the ruins. They both looked at something at the edge of the clearing and Fenix turned his sights to see what had grabbed their attention. There he saw something that surprised him but at the same made total sense.

Nora was riding an Ursa.

Like full on rodeo style with one hand in the air and everything.

The beast fell over and Fenix noticed Ren running to catch up to Nora who was now looking sad over her ride being over. 'Figures those two would be partners.' He smirked to himself at how perfect it was that boyfriend and girlfriend would be partners here for the next four years.

He turned towards a large crash at the other end of the clearing to see Pyrrha running from a gigantic Deathstalker. He prepared to fire a shot but then Pyrrha hit the Deathstalker in the forehead and disoriented it. In its dazed state it flailed around and Pyrrha turned to engage it. Seeing she seemed to have her fight in control, Fenix turned his sights to see why the rest of the group hadn't moved to help her out. For some reason they all had turned their attention to the sky.

Fenix looked up to see what they were so worried about. The Nevermore was up there and he didn't see the big deal with it. That is until he noticed a flash of white on the bottom of the Nevermore.

"Oh shit." He said it out loud. Weiss was hanging onto the Nevermore that Ruby had dropped off of earlier. Hanging on by only one hand to make matters worse. Quickly, Fenix grabbed a purple vial of dust off of his belt and put it into the slot on the left side of his rifle. He loaded a round into the chamber using the bolt action and then twisted the vial so the dust would spread into the gun. The purple dust filled up the rifle in the same manor that it had on his MK-14. However, since this rifle was a much larger caliber, the dust would only suffice for one shot instead of three. As his gun began to glow a dark purple, he focused back in on Weiss and made his adjustments.

The range was just over a mile and a half which would be pushing it for most normal sniper rifles. He however built his for maximum range and accuracy. This was still by no means an easy shot but he had made similar ones before so he was confident. He took a reading on what effects the wind and gravitational pull would have on his bullet at this range. He lined up the shot accordingly and just waited. As if on cue, Weiss lost her grip and started falling. Fenix got ready to pull the trigger until something out of the nearby trees interrupted him from taking the shot.

It was Jaune. Of course he would do something like this. Jumping out of the trees he caught Weiss bridal style. For some reason the two seemed to hover for a second and Fenix knew that was his best chance. He exhaled as he pulled the trigger and watched the results of his shot through the scope.

Now in most instances people would be cautious of shooting their friends with a high caliber sniper rifle. Most instances also don't include a dust infused round and somebody who has experience with this tactic. The dust infused round would detonate on impact but would not pierce its target. All it would do is it would spread the dust and cause its target to be effected according to which ever dust had been used. Thankfully for Jaune and Weiss, Fenix had shot a purple dust bullet at them. Purple dust was the rare gravity type dust. As Weiss and Jaune held each other closely realizing they were about to fall, the round struck Jaune in the center of his chest armor. A puff of purple showed Fenix that his bullet had hit its mark. Fenix watched in amusement as the two wore shocked looks upon their faces. Instead of plummeting to the ground they were gently drifting downwards to it. They landed softly and Jaune put Weiss down earning a slight nod from the Schnee. Fenix considered that a win for Jaune.

He then saw Jaune looking intently at somebody in the group and speaking to them. Fenix moved his sights to see that Ruby was looking through the scope of what appeared to be her own sniper rifle. She was looking directly at him. Not removing his eyes from the sights, he put his trigger and middle finger to his forehead and gave a two fingered salute to Ruby. She grinned as she put her rifle down and waved back. He watched as she turned to talk to the rest of the group. They looked in his direction and gave their individual appreciative gestures towards him. They didn't have much time as Pyrrha was suddenly thrown by the Deathstalker into the middle of the group.

Liam finally made his way up the cliff and grabbed onto the ledge of the area Fenix was laying on. He hoisted himself and collected himself before shooting a hateful glare towards Fenix. Fenix couldn't pass this moment to tease the big bear.

"You're late." His only response was an inappropriate finger being raised at him. Fenix just raised his own right back at him.

"Love you too partner." He just smiled at Liam and picked up his rifle. Flicking it to the left it began mecha-shifting into his twin swords. As they began shifting they heard a guttural growl behind them. They turned slowly to find that three large holes were in the back wall of the natural arena. All three holes had multiple pairs of red eyes peering at the two huntsmen.

"It seems the noise of your rifle attracted some attention." Liam said as he slowly crept his fingers to grip the sword strapped to his back.

"It would appear so." Fenix quipped back as he held his swords up in a battle stance. Before anything could start a grappling hook caught a rock on the ledge to the left of Liam and Fenix's position. It tightened and a whirring noise could be heard coming from the wire cable attached to the hook. All movement stopped for a few moments as all parties (Grimm included) watched with anticipation who was coming up.

Suddenly, two figures jumped up from the side of the cliffs and landed on the edge of the arena near the two boys. Both boys' eyes widened in shock of recognizing the one who was removing her arm from around the back of a boy who appeared to be a mix of a cowboy and a soldier.

The boy wore a simple pair of blue jeans with an ammo belt strapped around his waist. Black combat boots and a brown double breasted shirt helped complete the basic layer of his attire. The most noticeable garments of his outfit, however, were a black cowboy hat and a matching black duster coat that he had unbuttoned. The hat also had a brown band going around the base of the crown. On his left hand was a rather peculiar looking black glove with white lines running down the tops of the fingers. There was no matching glove on his right hand, leaving it bare.

As he was dragged the wind caught his duster and flowed up allowing Fenix to see a rather large revolver in a holster attached to the boy's right hip. The top of the holster was hooked onto the ammo belt while the bottom had a strap that wrapped around the boy's thigh. This allowed the holster to be secured against his hip without any unnecessary movement. Fenix also noticed across his back there appeared to be an intimidating, yet dated, looking assault rifle. Fenix thought it looked like an old version of the Atlesian Military models. Brushing off his fascination with weapons he moved to get their attention.

"Hey Alexis!" Both boys said in unison seeming to forget the predicament they were in for a split second. The girl smiled and waved in reply after noticing the two boys she recognized. She started walking towards the other two dragging her compadre along behind her.

"Who's your partner here?" Fenix asked casually as he motioned with Veloces towards the unknown male of the newly formed group. Alexis and her buddy stopped once they were right next to Fenix and Liam.

"Beau." The boy stated simply with a tilt of his hat in a greeting motion.

"Sooooo… not to be rude, but why do you both have your weapons drawn?" Alexis asked as she tilted her head to the side in an adorable fashion. Fenix then remembered the Grimm were still there and his eyes widened in realization.

"Shit." He turned and assumed a defensive stance in case the beasts were already attacking. Luckily he turned to see that they hadn't approached yet. The Grimm were gathering at the far end of the walled in arena. He heard the rest of his group assume a stance as well. He just grimaced as he noticed what they were dealing with. A large group of Griffons were gathered in force and more were still coming out of the holes in the back wall.

"Ya'll kicked the hornet's nest didn't ya?" Beau stated with a rather thick southern style drawl.

"It was him." Liam deadpanned as he pointed to Fenix with his thumb.

"So what are we dealing with here?" Alexis asked as she armed two forearm gauntlets on her arms. Fenix had no idea how he had not noticed those before but he put that thought to the back of his mind for the moment.

"You mean you haven't seen these before?" Fenix asked Alexis almost surprised at her lack of knowledge of their current opponent.

"Never." It was a simple yet troubling answer.

"They are called Griffons. Head, wings, and talons of a Nevermore. Legs, body, and tail of a tiger. They can peck or bite with their beak, slice and claw with their talons, use their spiked tail as a club or spear, and shoot the feathers off their wings like a Nevermore. The feathers are not as deadly as a Nevermore's but they will still hurt if they hit you. An adult version of one is considered a B class Grimm and the alphas are A class. It looks like we have a nest of hatchlings to full grown adults on our hands here. Take out their wings if you can first. Once they are grounded they are easier to deal with. Got it?" After Fenix's quick summary and strategy he turned to see all three of the other students nod in acknowledgment.

Not having the time to sit down and talk with his group he would just have to make a plan based on their weapons. He hoped their styles weren't wildly different from what their weapons indicated.

"Alright here's the game plan! Liam you are the front line! Pave a path through their ranks, get us to that back wall so we call block up those holes, and cut off their reinforcements. Alexis you and Beau are right behind him dealing with anything that tries to get Liam. I will be in the back providing support and rear protection. They can fly so they might circle and try to attack from the back." As he finished Fenix slapped Cornibus on top of Veloces and transformed his swords to his MK-14 rifle.

"Any objections?" His response was Beau cocking his assault rifle, Alexis brandishing her forearm gauntlets, and a devilish grin from Liam. They assumed their formation and charged with a loud battle cry from Liam. Before opening fire, Fenix noticed Alexis pushing something on the side of her gauntlets and then a gun barrel seemed to pop up on each one.

The Griffons began to charge back in an unorganized fashion. Fenix kicked his semblance on and channeled his aura into his rifle. Now the lines on his rifle were a nice bright orange signaling that his bullets now had the power of his fire aura infused in them.

Fenix, Beau, and Alexis all opened fire with their guns. Fenix fired first scoring head shots on the front two Griffons. The fire aura in his bullets seared right through their protective bone masks killing them instantly. The other two joined in with Beau releasing a barrage of bullets into the oncoming mass of Grimm and Alexis firing what sounded like two pistols from her Gauntlets. Fenix knew that Alexis's small caliber bullets wouldn't do any damage to the larger ones but he didn't exactly have an alternative at the moment.

As the horde reached them Liam swung his huge sword in a wide arc. Six Griffons were sent backwards from the force of his strike. He continued to swing so that he could take out the most Grimm with one swing. Effectively sweeping the crowds of beasts out of his way so they could push forward.

Fenix continued to fire with unprecedented accuracy with his MK-14. With each pull of the trigger another Griffon would drop from the fire bullets passing through them. He watched as the fight was about to turn into a close quarters battle. The sheer number of Grimm was pushing their lines closer to the small group of hunters. To make matters worse he had to reload his clip allowing the Grimm a brief moment where they could push closer to the group. He slapped a fresh clip into his rifle and continued to fire. Seeing as they had gotten close to the back wall Fenix kicked his semblance off and picked a dust vial off his belt. This dust was a dark grey colored dust that soon had filled his rifle. Fenix figured this was close enough to plug the holes up with the rock dust rounds he had just armed.

"Liam, give me a boost!" Fenix yelled as he picked up his speed into a full sprint at his partner. Without missing a beat, Liam finished a wide downward slash and stuck his massive sword into the ground. Leaving his sword imbedded in the rocky floor, he quickly turned around to face Fenix and put both hands together to form a spot for Fenix to put his foot into. Fenix jumped and landed in Liam's hold. Quickly Liam threw Fenix straight up into the air with all his strength. This strength turned out to be more than enough as Fenix flew upwards at what felt like to him was a supersonic speed.

He was able to gain control of his ascent as he took aim at the openings along the cliff wall. Three bullets and three targets. This was the type of scenario he had trained for all those years. He aimed down his ACOG scope and fired at his first target. As the dust infused bullet met its mark, a spike filled barrier of stone suddenly sprouted up from the impact point of the bullet. This barrier effectively closed off that cavern so that nothing could get in or out. Smirking at his success, Fenix turned his attention to the second opening. He had to readjust a little since the recoil from his first shot threw his alignment off. Firing again, the same result as the first hole closed off the second opening. Taking aim at the final opening he fired and much to his delight sealed off the final gap in the same manner as he did with the first two. He was quite pleased with that move. Using teamwork to effectively cut off the enemy's reinforcements. A slight miscalculation was that he underestimated Liam's strength, seeing as he was still flying upwards through the air.

He looked down to inspect the battlefield from his aerial viewpoint. Most of the Griffons were pushing closer to his three companions, who had now formed a close defensive circle. A group of four Griffons had seen him tossed up and were currently flying upwards to attack him. Fenix's upwards velocity was slowing down and he looked up to see that he was approaching the peak of the Beacon Cliffs. He reached the apex of his flight as he cleared the tops of the cliff. He turned and much to his surprise met the curious looks of Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch as they stood on the ledge of the cliffs overlooking the temple. All he could think to do was bring his two fingers to his forehead and give them his signature two finger salute. This was accompanied with a grin and wink (which they couldn't see because of his sunglasses) as he started to free-fall back to his group. Luckily, he didn't miss the shocked look of Goodwitch and slight smirk from Ozpin before he fell out of their line of sight.

As he started falling downwards to meet the flying Grimm, he flicked his rifle to shift back to his twin swords. As he fell downwards towards the incoming Griffons, he adjusted himself so that he was now falling face first with his swords at his sides. By now he had fallen to meet the group attacking him.

The first Griffon swept at him with its front right talons. Fenix brought Veloces up to parry the attack and then counterattacked with Cornibus to cut the beast's right wing off. Its temporary momentum let it continue past him but he knew the fall would kill the beast. The second one followed the same attack style but Fenix once again deflected it. This time instead of cutting the wing off, he sliced Cornibus along its midsection effectively disemboweling the Grimm. The third Griffon seemed to wise up and avoided a close battle with him. Instead it tried to keep its distance and use its spiked tail as a spear to stab Fenix as it flew by him. He turned his body to dodge the weaponized tail. As the Grimm's tail passed by him harmlessly he sliced it off at the halfway mark with Veloces. The wounded Griffon screeched in pain but flew up higher to avoid any more confrontation with Fenix. He then continued to turn his body so that he was facing back at the last of his attackers. He crossed his arms in an 'X' pattern in front of him as the Griffon went to bite off his head. As soon as he got within striking distance, he wrenched both arms back towards their respective sides. The motion had both his swords catch the Griffon on both sides of its neck. The force of both swords decapitating the Grimm at the same time sent its dismembered head flying to the side. Unfortunately, Fenix couldn't avoid the body of the recently killed Grimm. He slammed into it the body effectively throwing him to the side and off his intended path to the rest of his team. Before he could correct his path, his attention was caught by the screeching of the Griffon whose tail he had cut off. The Griffon was diving at him with a vengeance for its now missing tail. Still spinning from the collision with the dead Griffon, Fenix slapped Veloces to the tip of Cornibus and shifted his swords into his fifty caliber sniper rifle. After three spins the shift was complete. He gripped his rifle tight and extended all his limbs to gather some sense of control back. After a few seconds he had stopped the spinning and was able to twist himself around enough to face back up at the incoming Grimm. He pulled the rifle up to his right shoulder but took no time to aim since the Griffon was basically on top of him. He pulled the trigger and watched as a large section of the beast's midsection disappeared. The screeching stopped as the body slumped over lifeless and continued to fall towards him. The force of the kick from his shot caused him to be hurled at a faster pace towards the ground. He was happy that that meant he was separating from the falling Grimm bodies. He was worried however because he was now speeding faster towards the ground. He flicked his rifle to transform back into his swords as he realized the floor of the arena was quickly approaching.

As soon as the swords had transformed back he sheathed them and flickered his semblance to life. Using the same trick he had at the beginning of this initiation he forced strong heat sources to his hands and feet via his aura. His propulsion kicked in but he had to quickly dodge the still falling Grimm bodies that hadn't completely disintegrated yet. He got clear of the falling debris and flew over to rejoin his group.

The look of pure shock on all three of their faces as he flew to them using his fire semblance was perfect though.

'Well no better time to show off than now I guess.' He thought to himself as he came to hover right in front of them. The Griffons were still not completely wiped out yet but his group had killed a good amount of them. Luckily for him they were all on the ground where his attack was sure to hit them. He refocused his aura from his extremities, stopping his hovering and landing gently on his feet. He crossed his arms in front of his body and focused his aura as he channeled it into one of his more powerful attacks. The ground beneath each Griffon summoned a circle of fire but before the Grimm could react he threw his arms out to their respective sides unleashing his attack.

Each circle of fire underneath the Griffons erupted upwards consuming them in flames. The Grimm let out deafening shrieks from the pain they were under from one of his most powerful attacks. The pure intensity of the fire wielder's attack left them unable to do anything but stand still until the flames killed them. Once the Grimm had all stopped their shrieking, signaling they were all dead, he released his attack and flicked his semblance off. He fell to one knee trying to catch his breath. Soon his teammates surrounded his with Alexis kneeling in front of him.

"Sorry. That move just takes a lot of my aura. Especially when there was so many of them. I'm running on fumes at this point. Good thing that was all of them." He panted out.

Of course, fate was never that kind to him. A large section of the back wall suddenly exploded as a larger and more armored version of the Griffons broke through the rock. It eyed the four hunters and gave an ear piercing screech at them.

"Ya had to say it." Beau sarcastically drawled to Fenix.

"My bad. Didn't expect an alpha this close to the school though." Fenix defended. Then the alpha Griffon finished its scream and charged the group. It ran along the ground but flapped its wings to speed itself towards them. Thinking quick Fenix took charge.

"You two take the wings!" He pointed to Beau and Alexis. Knowing full well that bullets would do no damage to the armor of an alpha Beau strapped his rifle to his back. Alexis turned halfway around still crouched but then stopped to think for a split second. She turned back to Fenix.

"Here." She said as she put her left hand on Fenix's shoulder. It was at that moment that Fenix felt the second most awkward feeling in his life. It felt like his aura was locked. Not like completely taken away, but locked behind a door and he couldn't access it. He also immediately felt immensely better. He felt so much energy flowing through him it was almost as if he was completely replenished.

Before he could thank her or ask questions she turned to stand and address her partner. She pressed a button on each of her gauntlets and dagger like blades suddenly appeared.

"Claws out." She winked to Beau. One side of his lips turned up into a lopsided smile. Suddenly his fingers became three times longer as the tips of his hands seemed to turn into claws. They both took off running at the oncoming alpha. Alexis went for the right wing and Beau went for the left one. As they charged Fenix turned to Liam.

"Liam?" The large bear faunus turned to look at Fenix.

"Cripple it." Liam then gave the most delightfully sinister smile. He gripped his sword and followed his two group members in the charge.

Fenix turned his attention back to Alexis and Beau's frontal attack. Beau was slightly ahead of Alexis in their charge so naturally he attacked first. As he went to slash at the Griffon's left wing with his claws, the beast threw its head to the side. It caught Beau dead to rights and threw him into the wall of the cliff far away. Before the beast could recover, Alexis struck.

To Fenix's surprise he felt some of his aura flare up unprovoked by him. However he realized there were no signs of it on him. He looked to watch Alexis's attack but was shocked at what he saw. Her blades were coated in fire. His fire.

He watched in astonishment as she raised her left bladed gauntlet up and slashed into the Grimm's right wing. Her left arm was raised above her head as she ran alongside the Griffon but under its outstretched wing. The fire blade sliced right through the tough feathers of the wing until it seemed to snag on something roughly halfway. Her momentum carried her body forward but the snagged blade caused her legs to be thrown up in front of her. She seemed to have planned that, because she used her new path to bring her right gauntlet up and slash into the rear section of the Griffon's wing. The gash along the back of the wing cut through the last of the muscle and the wing drooped harmlessly alongside the Griffon still attached. As a result of the cutting into its wing, the Griffon began to flail wildly. A rather nasty kick from one of the alpha's hind leg connected with Alexis and threw her to the side. She skidded to a stop before she hit the wall but she was slow to get up. As she did get up she turned to look at Fenix and he noticed her eyes were on fire the same manor his normally were when he activated his semblance.

Those glowing eyes that masked her true eyes gave him a bone chilling realization. The way it flickered upon her face, the way the flames spewed out to the sides of her eyes, the way the flames seemed to intensify as she stood up and winced at the pain… It was all too familiar. It looked just like how his mom had looked that day. He shook his head to rid him of those thoughts but he couldn't avoid looking back to see his signature fire mask on somebody else's face. As he stared into her eyes he could only think one thing.

'How?'

A gruesome squelching sound snapped him back to reality. He broke his amazed stare at her and turned to see Liam had hit the alpha Griffon in its left leg at the knee. He had turned just in time to watch the leg buckle not being able to support the Griffon's weight. It fell face first into the ground and skidded right towards Fenix. He rolled out of the way easily and turned to watch the beast come to a stop. It began struggling to its feet but had a lot of difficulty since it couldn't put much weight on one of its front legs.

At that moment he felt the restriction on his aura disappear and his semblance flickered to life without command from him. He quickly turned it off and turned to see Alexis brushing herself off and no longer in pain. Looking to Beau he saw that the boy's attempts to get himself up were futile in his injured state. Fenix turned back to Alexis to issue more commands.

"Alexis! Think you can do that same trick to Beau?"

"No problem! His semblance might make killing that thing easier by the way!" She yelled as she ran to go help her partner.

She ran over to Beau as Liam walked up to Fenix. They both watched as Alexis helped Beau up instead of doing her healing trick immediately. Checking back to see the Griffon still wasn't a threat, they waited for Alexis and Beau to join them. Soon they had made their way over to Fenix and Liam. He turned to talk to Alexis and Liam continued to watch the Griffon to make sure it didn't blind side them.

"Why didn't you do your little healing thing?" Fenix asked Alexis.

"Well it only lasts for a minute. So I want to wait until the last possible moment so I can have the most time possible with his semblance. I'm sorry Beau." Alexis explained to the group.

"Ah, it's manageable. I'll be fine in a bit." Beau wearily smiled to Alexis.

"Ok so semblances, what are yours?" Fenix asked Beau and Alexis. Alexis set Beau down against a rock to make him a little more comfortable than he was leaning on her.

"Mine is healing swap. Basically I heal you, aura and all, while I borrow the abilities of your semblance for sixty seconds." Alexis explained to Fenix and Liam as she tried to help Beau.

"And mine – mffph- is death glare. I can freeze anything living in place with a stare." He had to grunt in the middle of the explanation because Alexis was prodding his ribs to see if any were broken. Fenix then turned to Liam who was still watching the Griffon try to gain a sense of balance.

"How about you big guy?" At fenix's words Liam turned to address his three teammates. Instead of talking though, he looked intensely at Fenix. His brown eyes suddenly went completely milky white. Fenix all of the sudden felt like his semblance was locked up again. This time it felt more violent than when it had happened with Alexis. This time it felt like his semblance was being forcibly restrained whereas when Alexis did it it just felt that he was gently being pushed back.

"Negation. I can cancel out any semblance and prevent the person from using it as long as I focus on them." As he said it his eyes returned to their normal color and Fenix felt his semblance was accessible again.

"Well mine is obviously the ability to harness fire. So know that we all know about each other, how about we do a little trick to take care of our friend over there?" Fenix said as he pointed to the now standing Griffon. It held its injured left front leg up so it was only standing on three legs. Its mauled wing was also hanging loosely to its side as it tried to hobble towards the group in a pathetic attempt to attack them.

"You have a plan then?" Liam asked Fenix to which he just grinned.

"Of course. So here is what we are going to do. Sorry Beau but are going to have to sit this one out so you can heal." Beau nodded as the other two gathered in closely for a group huddle. Fenix quickly summarized his plan to the group and they all agreed to it. They broke their little huddle and started their plan.

Alexis started by walking over and putting her hand on Beau's shoulder. The healing swap took effect and Beau immediately perked up. Alexis then sauntered towards the Griffon with a sway of her hips. It was a cocky walk with an almost seductive tone to it. All three boys couldn't help themselves but watch the spectacle of her backside moving back and forth. She was attractive after all, and they were teenage boys. Fenix thought she had the same physical build as Pyrrha. Fenix shook his head reminding himself that this was not the time to lose himself to his hormones. Before his mind could wander any further, Fenix tore his eyes away from the sight, and put his swords together to form his fifty caliber sniper rifle. As his rifle formed he grabbed his last vial of blue ice dust and put it into the slot on his gun.

At this point Alexis had reached the Griffon and stopped in front of it but out of range of its claws and tail. The beast let out a loud screech directed right at her as if it were to scare her off. When the Griffon's screech didn't make her run it settled for glaring at her.

And that was its mistake.

Alexis stared at the Grimm and it instantly froze up. It was as if somebody had the pause button on a video. As soon as Alexis had it caught in Beau's semblance, Fenix sprinted towards her and the Griffon. When he reached her he jumped high over her and aimed his rifle at the Griffon's head. To insure that this method would work he needed to hit a weak spot in the Grimm's armor. He settled for the open spot in the bone mask where the Grimm's eyes were. Pulling the trigger he watched as his bullet hit its mark.

As the ice dust bullet impacted, the Grimm's head became encased in ice. Many parts of the bone mask cracked and some even broke off from the expanding ice suddenly growing underneath it. Surprisingly, the Grimm remained still as Alexis continued to stare at it. She didn't want to risk the chance of her breaking the stare and letting the beast free of her hold. Now that the head of the Grimm was a large spiked block of ice, it was Liam's turn. Fenix landed and got out of the way as Liam came lunging by him with his large sword gripped behind him in a downward angle. As he reached the still frozen Grimm he brought his sword forward in a hard uppercut swing.

The ice shattered from the force of Liam's strike and the entire head of the alpha Griffon exploded. Now that the body was no longer being held by Alexis's stare, it fell over lifeless with a thud that reverberated the entire arena they were in. As the body of the Grimm began to slowly disintegrate, the group gathered together.

"Well that was fun." Liam said with a deep hearty laugh.

"I agree, but before anything else happens let's get up there and finish this stupid initiation." Fenix replied with a chuckle of his own as he pointed up to the top of the cliffs. Liam began to climb again and Beau wrapped an arm around Alexis as she fiddled with her gauntlets. Soon she aimed her right arm up at the cliff and a grappling hook shot out of it pulling her and Beau up the cliff to land ahead of Liam. Fenix just shook his head and smiled as he flicked his semblance on and began flying up the cliff walls. As he was the last one to leave he glanced back to make sure there were no left over Griffons going to attack them from behind. He was pleased to see no Grimm in sight. It didn't take him long to reach the top but once he did he waited for the rest of his team to get up before speaking to the professors. Alexis and Beau made it up before Liam, who grumbled something about being the only true man in the group.

Once they had all gathered at the top of the cliffs they went to meet the professors together. Fenix pulled his and Liam's chess piece out and handed it to the Headmaster as Alexis did the same with her and Beau's piece. As they did, Fenix noticed a twinkle in the Headmaster's eye.

"Interesting." He mused aloud.

"What sir?" Alexis asked him innocently.

"It seems both of your pairs have returned with the golden queen piece." The Headmaster answered.

"Does that mean both of our pairs make up one of the teams of four in our class sir?" Fenix asked guessing he was right.

"That is correct Mr. Fall. However, it will not be official until the ceremony." With that the Headmaster gave the pieces to Professor Goodwitch and she typed something into her oversized scroll. Then a loud shrieking noise came from over the ledge of the cliff where the professors had been standing earlier.

"Don't tell me there's more." Fenix exasperatedly sighed.

"It seems Ms. Rose and her team are almost finished." Professor Goodwitch said as she observed a screen on her scroll. Fenix then heard what sounded like a fellow sniper rifle being shot as the shriek continued to get louder. All of the sudden the shrieking stopped. Before Fenix could ask any more questions, Ruby came flying up over the edge of cliff with a freaking scythe in her hands and the Nevermore from earlier head flying up detached from its body. She didn't notice the rest of them and turned around to look back over the cliff with rose petals coming off her cloak.

Fenix saw she hadn't noticed them and grinned. He held his hands up to shush everyone and started sneaking up behind Ruby. He turned to see the inquisitive looks on everybody's face and he mouthed "I have to do this" to them. There was one thing that he was positive would strike fear into the younger girl. As he got up right behind Ruby he quietly inhaled as much air as he could. With all his might to sound like a certain blue haired character from a children's show he saw a long time ago, he yelled at the top of his lungs.

"COOKIE!"

Ruby let out the highest pitched scream he had ever heard in his life. He was sure that anybody who couldn't see that it was her would swear it was another giant Nevermore screeching out. Ruby instinctively turned and swung her scythe to hit him. He reached up to grab the handle of her scythe and stop her. As she turned around and saw who it was who scared her, her face changed from one of fear to one of complete fury at him. Before she started berating him he could only think one thing.

'Worth it.'

 **A/N: So what do you guys think? Follow/fave/comment! This one took a little extra work into it but I want to know what you guys think of my action sequence writing.**


	10. Chapter 10

( **A/N): Hey guys I'm back! Took a little bit due to the Thanksgiving holiday and a week's vacation with the family. From here I want to know if you guys want me to stick close to the cannon or if I should mix it up a little bit. SPOILER ALERT! You are going to get a good glimpse of a new ship in this chapter! Enjoy!**

Chapter 10: Team building with a Surprise Visit

After meeting up with the rest of the first years who passed initiation, the Headmaster ordered the students to make their way towards the main hall. Soon there would be a ceremony to announce the students who passed as well as their new teams. Fenix and his team already knew their soon to be assignments so it was more of a formality than anything to them. Just another thing between them and a hot meal followed by some much needed rest.

Ruby was trying to enact some form of revenge on Fenix for the scare on the cliffs. The entire trip back to the school consisted of Ruby trying to slap or punch Fenix in some way. The key word was trying since every time she did, Fenix either took the hit with ease or deflected it. After several unsuccessful attempts she got frustrated and used her semblance to run circles around him while punching him at super speeds. Fenix just turned his semblance on and Ruby got some light burns from trying to punch a guy who literally set himself on fire. After that incident she returned to just trying to slapping at him. Fenix and Yang found the whole ordeal hilarious of course. Their constant teasing only made her change from trying to hit Fenix to crossing her arms and pouting.

"Seriously Ruby, the cuteness is strong with that pout." Fenix chuckled. Ruby just tried to intensify her pout but it just made her look more adorable to Fenix.

When they arrived at the hall the first years were all gathered to the side of the stage. Two teams of people Fenix had never met were called up and assigned to their team. Fenix found it odd that each team was named after some word that was created from the first letters of the first names of the people in the team. Soon Fenix and his team were called up to the stage.

"Fenix Fall, Beau McClellan, Liam Randgrid, and Alexis Hygeia. You four selected the white queen pieces. From this day on you will work together as… team Fable (FABL). Lead by…Fenix Fall." The Headmaster spoke and Fenix politely bowed. He then signaled his team to head off the stage to make way for the next group.

"Those pieces were gold right?" Fenix asked his team as they headed for the steps to the side of the stage. It slightly bugged him that the professor said they were white pieces when he thought they were obviously golden.

"I thought so." Alexis replied. Beau just nodded once to show he thought so too. Liam just shrugged as if saying, 'what can you do?'

As they stepped off the stage something caught Fenix's eye. Amongst the crowd of civilians and their senior students, a blonde haired blue eyed girl was waving at Fenix. He walked over to meet the stranger but to his surprise when they got close she jumped onto him. She wrapped her arms around his neck to bring him in for a rather affectionate hug. Fenix didn't know how to respond since he hadn't ever met this girl before. After a few awkward moments he patted her on the back. She let go and look up at him making eye contact. Before he could say anything he watched her eyes change from blue to one pink and one brown.

"Hey sweet thing." He smirked as he grabbed her by the waist, and pulled her into a close side hug. He turned to watch as another team was called up and given their team name.

Neo was happy. She loved how he held her close. She especially loved the smile on his face that showed how pleased he was that she showed up to his ceremony. The feeling of making somebody else happy just by being around them was almost foreign to her. Both because of her line of work and her experience of boys not treating her right. Due to her bad luck with boys she had avoided the idea of relationships recently and focused entirely on her job working for her uncle Torchwick. It had been a long time since she had cared what somebody thought of her besides her dear uncle.

She was brought from her thoughts back to reality when Fenix reached into the pouch on his belt and pulled out his scroll. She nudged him in the ribs with her elbow to get his attention. Once she did she gave him a questioning look.

"Payback." He simply stated as he hit the record button on his scroll. Neo turned her attention to what he was recording. It was another team getting inducted.

"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, and Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team Juniper (JNPR). Led by… Jaune Arc." Jaune then asked the Headmaster if he had heard correctly and the elderly man just replied by congratulating him. Fenix smiled at his friend being anointed leader of his team just like he himself had. He then watched as Pyrrha playfully punched Jaune in the shoulder. The girl overestimated Jaune's strength though as he fell to the ground from the force of the punch. At that point Fenix ended the recording and put his scroll away.

Neo could swear she heard him chuckling evilly to himself. He then turned to her and realized that she was still in disguise.

"So what's with this?" He asked as he motioned to all of her with his free hand. She pulled out her scroll to type out her response.

 **I just don't feel like being recognized here.**

"Ah, so you are famous in Vale?" Fenix asked with legitimate curiosity.

 **You could say that.** She almost cracked a smile at her own little joke of being a wanted criminal that most of the people there would have no problem identifying. That would be troublesome to say the least. What with Ozpin and Goodwitch here as well as a handful of fully trained hunters. Also informing the boy who: she knew could handle himself in a fight, had a familiarly powerful semblance, also appeared to have a massive amount of aura, and the fact he was already within her guard with an arm around her, could make things incredibly more difficult. On top of that, she didn't exactly like the idea of informing a guy she had a good amount of interest in that she was a wanted criminal who had a murderous history.

"Huh, can't blame you there. So want to help me get about four years worth of payback while pissing off eight women at the same time?" He said with a devious smirk as he waved his scroll up to show Neo. Something he didn't know was that Neo loved created chaos when the opportunity presented itself. Roman Torchwick was the mastermind but he usually left Neo to wreck havoc in her own way on jobs he assigned her. She was very successful in that regard. So Fenix was very surprised to see her smile brightly and nod that she would indeed help him. He thought that women usually tried to stay away from drama with other girls they didn't know. He just shrugged deciding not to question it as he dialed up an old number that had memorized long ago. After a few rings a woman picked up and Fenix immediately hit the speaker option.

"Hello, Arc residence, this is Judy."

"Hey mamma Arc!" Fenix said cheerily into the scroll.

"Fenix?! Oh my God I haven't heard anything from you in years! How are you?" The woman said ecstatically.

"I'm fine I'm fine. Now is everybody home? I have something important to tell you all." Fenix's grin could not be contained at this point.

"GIRLS! JOSEPH! LIVING ROOM NOW!" People near Fenix and Neo in the crowd winced at how loud the woman had yelled. Fenix's attention was solely focused on the scroll screen so he missed the heated glare he was receiving from Yang as her team made their way onto the stage. She had noticed Fenix had his arms around another blonde haired girl and she was not happy about that.

Back with Fenix and Neo waiting, they could overhear everything on the other side of the call.

"Jillian! Joan! Get down here now!" They heard Judy yell over the sounds of people scurrying around the house to obey their mother's commands.

"But mom we're busy!" They barely heard a younger female voice call out from somewhere else in the house.

"Iiiiits Feeeeeniiiiiix!" They heard Judy very distinctly call back with a sing song voice. Soon the sound of two people noisily running to join the rest could be heard.

"Hey momma Arc can you turn it to video feed by any chance?" Fenix asked as he pulled Neo closer to him. Before he switched his end to video he whispered to Neo, "You're about to become famous." She couldn't help but silently chuckle at him. He then switched it to video feed and was greeted with an up-close shot of Judith Arc.

"Is this how it works Jessie?" She said as she turned to look behind her.

"Yes mother it is working properly. Now set it up here so we can all see." A sophisticated female voice said. After a bit of moving of the screen, Fenix and Neo were greeted with the sight of seven women crowded around a couch as a mature looking woman and man sat in the middle of it.

"Hey girls! You two still struggling to keep them all in line?" Fenix said to Judith and Joseph after he greeted the seven sisters of Jaune.

"Hey Fenix!"

"Hiya cutie!"

*head nod*

"Whats up bro?"

"Hello handsome."

"Greetings Fenix!"

"Hiiiiiiiii Feeniiiiiiix!"

"Yes they are still quite the handful as you can see."

"So who's the girl my boy?"

All conversation was put on hold as eight pairs of female eyes examined the blonde haired blue eyed girl that was being held close by their favorite (some more than others) fire wielder.

"Oh this is my sweet thing." He said shrugging his arm that was around Neo. It slightly lifted her up so as to show who he was referring to. He thought his nickname for her sounded a little dull but at the moment he couldn't think of any better aliases. His answer was met with curious looks, a few angered glares directed at Neo, and a blush by Neo herself.

"Sweet thing?" Joseph the great oblivious father figure asked Fenix.

"Yes. And no that is not her real name. I am not giving that one out because I know Jessica's online stalking habits." Neo looked up at him with a slightly shocked expression.

"I don't know what you could possibly mean dear brother." Jessica spoke up with a fake innocent expression.

"We all know what he means sis. And we don't blame you at all Fenix. But before you guys get married we are going to have to officially meet her." Fenix started coughing loudly and Neo just stood there like a deer in the headlights. After composing himself Fenix decided to break the awkward tension.

"Uh, thank you for stating the obvious Jill but let's not try to scare her off too quickly. Ok?" Fenix asked the girl meekly.

"Ok little bro!" The girl saluted back to Fenix.

"Speaking of brothers… I can't help but notice Jaune isn't there." Fenix asked the group trying to contain his amusement with the situation.

The seven sisters visibly tensed up while the parents had a look of sorrow on their faces. Jaune had told Fenix that he had snuck away but to see how it was affecting his (in heart just not legally) adopted family in a bad way tugged at his heart strings.

"Yes. Jaune ran away and took Crocea Mors with him. We haven't heard anything from him in the past two weeks. We've been looking for him but we haven't found anything yet. I'm worried he has gone off and done something foolish since he took a weapon with him." Jaune's mother spoke softly. Trying to fight back tears.

"Really? You couldn't trace him at ALL Jess?" Fenix asked actually surprised.

"Nope. Jaune is a pretty smart kid when he wants to be. He left no trail." Jessie said with the smallest hint of pride in her baby brother's ability to avoid her.

"Well on a happier note… I have something to show you guys." Fenix said preparing himself for the wrath he was about to unleash. However, Neo had a slight alteration to his plan as she got his attention and waved her scroll in his face.

"Hmm?" Fenix asked since he hadn't the foggiest idea what she was doing. Good thing he didn't need to as Neo sent him a file from her scroll to his. He then opened it to see what it was. He smirked a little and kissed her on the cheek.

"You're the best you know that?" Fenix asked Neo. She blushed a little but quickly tried to hide it when she noticed three pair of eyes on the other side of the call giving her a death glare. Fenix pulled up the file and shared it with the Arc family scroll. He hit play and all ten of them watched as a recording started. The recording was of Fenix and his team getting brought up before Ozpin and formally inducted into Beacon. After the short video was played the Arc family broke out in congratulations to Fenix and how proud they were in him.

"Guys thanks but seriously it'll be much better when you come here in a few weeks to see me in person." The group on the other side got silent for a second before Joseph asked the million dollar question.

"What's in a few weeks Fenix? What do you mean?"

"Well I don't know the exact weekend but I've been told in a few weeks it will be family weekend. Family's of the students here will be able to come check out our new lives. Like see a Friday in our lives and check out the school with us." Fenix's grin had reached from ear to ear with what he just set up.

"Well Fenix you can be sure we will be there for you. That is of course if something doesn't come up with Jaune's missing case." Judy spoke for the group as the rest just nodded in approval.

"Oh but I wasn't meaning for me." Fenix stated. For a beat nobody seemed to get what he was meaning until Jessica (The smartest of the family in Fenix's eyes) seemed to perk up with a shocked look and spoke up.

"Fenix… What exactly do you mean?" Fenix just kept grinning as he opened a new file on his scroll to share with the Arc family.

"Let's just say I have some payback for the Joan and I fiasco from four years ago." Fenix watched as Joan turned a nice shade of red, Judy's eyes widened in realization of what was happening, Joseph still looked clueless as usual, and Neo shot him an aggravated raised eyebrow. Before he could get interrupted by anybody he hastily hit the play button. He watched as the Arc family saw a recording of Jaune brought up on stage with the rest of team Juniper. Their looks of shock were complete when they watched as Ozpin declared Jaune as the team leader. A few of the girls giggled when Pyrrha slugged Jaune in the arm and knocked him on his butt. Once the recording ended Fenix just waited for the realization to set in with all of them. Finally, Judy decided to speak up for the rest of the family that was still in shock.

"Fenix. Are you telling me that my darling son, who has little to no combat experience and has yet to have his aura unlocked, just got into Beacon. Not only did he somehow miraculously pass the initiation but he did something during it to give him the credibility that Ozpin saw fit to elect him as the team leader?" As she finished Fenix could see her knuckles turn white from clenching her fists too hard as well as her right eye slightly twitch.

"Wait wait wait… He didn't have his aura unlocked?" Fenix asked hysterically.

"No, I never unlocked it." Joseph spoke up.

"Ok I would NEVER have let him go out there if I would have known that. But he made it out. I'll make sure if someone hasn't already that I will unlock his aura myself. But I think he is in good hands. That Pyrrha Nikos girl is his partner. She is a pretty nice person and I've been told she is quite the fighter." Fenix let go of Neo at the beginning of his realizing Jaune had done one of the most idiotic things he had ever heard of.

"I understand you would never do that Fenix but it doesn't make me any less angry at him to go off and do all this." Judy said with a good amount of venom in her voice.

"Well you have to remember that he also has me looking after him momma. I'm a team leader just like him and I'll make sure he is ok. I give you my word on that." Fenix answered with a serious tone. The entire Arc clan seemed to relax a little bit at that declaration. Fenix was a man made of the same cloth as them. His word was his bond. They all felt slightly relieve because they knew he could be trusted with this.

"Thank you Fenix, now I'm sure you understand that I need to get off here to speak with my nitwit of a son." Judy spoke once again and the seven other Arc girls all winced at the chewing out Jaune was about to get.

"I understand momma. Love you all! You have my scroll number now so you guys can call and message me anytime you want. Just don't go overboard… Joan." Fenix singled Joan out because he knew firsthand how she could be overbearing at times.

"Noooo promises!" Joan replied with a flirtatious tone. Neo didn't like that one bit as she put herself back under Fenix's arm and wrapped her own around his waist. Joan seemed perturbed by that which gave Neo a satisfied sense of accomplishment.

"Alright Goodbye Fenix!" Judy called out as she waved to him.

"Goodbye!" The rest of the Arcs yelled out before the call was disconnected.

"So that was a thing. Thanks for helping me out with that by the way. Now I can't wait to hear how much of it Jaune gets from his family for all that." Fenix said as he rubbed his cheeks. They hurt from grinning so much at getting his sweet sweet revenge on his old friend. Neo just looked at him that conveyed that she had questions for him.

"I'll explain on our date this weekend ok? Saturday good for you?" Fenix asked as he did not feel like explaining everything now after what he just went through. Neo put her index finger on her chin and look upwards as if she were deep in thought. She then playfully smiled at him and nodded.

"Perfect. Well Sweet thing I hate to cut this short but I do need to get to my team so we can get our dorm room assigned to us. Kind of need some rest after a day like today you know?" Neo understood but still didn't like that he was right. She wanted to argue but then she looked into his eyes. He looked sad. Like he really didn't want her to go but he knew that he needed to do a few other things at this moment. She kind of did just drop in to see him without telling him. She had already taken some of his time away from all the duties he would now have since he was a Beacon student and a leader as well.

Fenix went in to kiss her and she met him halfway. He tried to pull back after a quick second of the kiss. He really did. But as he drew back she leaned back to follow him and continue the kiss. He couldn't find the willpower to deny her and they both melted into a passionate lip locked embrace. He wrapped his arms around her and she allowed herself to be captured willingly. Wrapping her own arms around his midsection again, she attempted to delve further into the kiss by slipping her tongue into his mouth. He clenched his lips together to deny her access and she broke off the kiss to pout at him a little bit. He personally thought it was cute when she pouted like that but he put up his index finger to place on her lips.

"Not here sweet thing. It's not the appropriate time or place. Don't worry you will get your chance." He finished with a wink at her. She turned to look around and for the first time realized they were gathering a bit of attention. She didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention since she was trying to hide her true identity. She just nodded in response and dove into his chest for one more hug. He returned her affection by pulling her in closer. After a few moments of that she pulled back and he released her. She then began to walk away before disappearing in a blink. Fenix just smiled to himself with a slight sense of déjà vu as he turned to walk towards where the rest of his team, along with teams RWBY and JNPR were waiting for him. Jaune looked extremely upset and Fenix had a good idea why.

"You told my family?!" Jaune halfway yelled at Fenix as he approached the group. That got the attention of the group as they all turned to look at him.

"What did he tell who?" Ruby asked confused like the rest of the group was.

"Told Jaune's family he was a leader here." Fenix simply stated. It wasn't technically a lie but it wasn't the full truth either. He preferred to not tell everybody on the day of initiation that Jaune had snuck into the school and then been made a leader.

"Why would that be a big deal?" Alexis asked.

"Don't get off topic here! Answer me. You told my MOTHER?!" Jaune asked with as much anguish as he could pack into his words while also hoping to avoid answering Alexis.

"Sure did." Fenix replied with a lopsided cocky looking smile.

"Why?" Jaune asked in despair.

"Two words…" Fenix paused as he held up two fingers. Everybody literally leaned in to hear what his reasoning was.

"Payback bitch." Everybody in the group was stunned to some degree. Ren and Beau showed it by raising an eyebrow curiously. The rest had a look of shock on their faces except for Nora. For some reason Nora looked downright furious.

"How dare you harm my fearless leader! This means war!" With that she put up her arms in a fighting stance and looked ready to attack. Fenix noticed as Ren took a step away from Nora. That couldn't bode well. From what he knew of Nora she was very energetic and clingy to her boyfriend. Kind of like a child in some aspects. So he decided to reason with her as he would with a kid. He pointed at Jaune and turned to speak to Nora directly.

"He started it." He stated and it seemed to work. Ren's eyes went wide and Nora dropped her fighter stance to talk to Jaune.

"Jaune-Jaune how could you?" She asked with an overly dramatic flair to her voice.

"Wha…What?" Jaune asked Fenix. Still as dense as ever, Fenix knew he was going to have to remind Jaune.

"Remember the Joan fiasco? Yeah consider this payback. Plus a little interest." Fenix said as he gave a smug look to Jaune.

"HOW IS THIS EVEN REMOTELY EVEN?!" Jaune roared at Fenix who didn't flinch under the angered look of his friend.

"Oh it's not. I just want you to remember this moment. This goes for all of you." He paused as he waved his pointer finger to the rest of the ten other people there. "You ever do something I consider offensive or hurtful… and I will get you back. It may be immediate, it may be days, weeks, or in this case four years. But I do hold grudges against people who wrong me and I WILL have my revenge." The rest of the group shared a scared look. Except for Nora who decided to pipe up.

"You said something about interest. What did you mean by that?" She asked with her usual bubbly voice. The others seemed to take notice of this and all eyed Fenix wondering what his answer would be.

"Oh I took the liberty of letting them know they could come for family weekend. Which by the way should be in a few weeks so the rest of you should let your families know once we know the actual dates." At Fenix's revelation Jaune just turned ghostly white.

"I'm dead. Aren't I?" He asked the fire wielder. It was at this moment that Pyrrha finally decided to try to consol her partner.

"I'm sure it couldn't be that bad. Right?" She asked Fenix since he seemed to know a lot about this situation.

"Depends on how much sucking up to momma Arc and his sisters he can do in those three weeks. Since he didn't exactly let his parents know he was coming here before just up and leaving." Many of their new friends finally got some understanding into Jaune's predicament. Ruby and Nora just looked at Jaune with a shocked look. Yang, Ren, Liam, and Beau just shook their heads at the blonde knight's idiocy. Weiss of course just scoffed at him while the rest of the group just took the information in silently.

"By the way…" Fenix then took that time to smack Jaune as hard as he could across the back of his head. This knocked his childhood friend face first into the ground in a perfect face plant. As soon as the shock of what just happen subsided, Pyrrha looked ready to murder Fenix. He held up his hand to tell her to wait for him to explain himself.

"THAT'S FOR GOING INTO INITIATION WITHOUT YOUR AURA UNLOCKED YOU SON OF A BITCH! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" He was so angry he didn't notice his semblance flickered on for a split moment. When it turned on his entire body was engulfed in flames. His friends only had a split second to watch it because as soon as it had started it turned itself back off and the flames disappeared.

Once again the group was surprised. The thoughts going through their heads were how did Jaune get accepted to Beacon without even having his aura unlocked? Pyrrha had forgotten that little tidbit with everything else that happened today. Now that Fenix had noticed that, she couldn't help but agree that it was a rather reckless move on Jaune's part.

"Wait, Jaune didn't have his aura unlocked out there?" Ruby asked still in shock.

"No, I unlocked it for him once we met up and I realized he didn't have it active." Pyrrha explained as Jaune slowly got up to his hands and knees as he tried to reorient himself. Fenix took some relief in knowing Pyrrha had already unlocked Jaune's aura.

"I survived didn't I?" He meekly defended. Fenix just pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"Jaune, do you have any idea how distraught your family and I would have been if something severe would have happened to you during initiation? Hell do you have any idea how much of a guilt trip I would have been on if even something minor happened? You should have told me and let me unlock it before initiation. No offense Pyrrha." Fenix finished looking at Pyrrha apologetically.

"None taken. I am happy I could help Jaune out and that I was the one to help him. But he shouldn't have waited until the test to actually get it unlocked." Pyrrha said as she shot a half hearted stern look at Jaune. He replied by laughing nervously and rubbing the back of his head where Fenix had smacked him.

"Ok well that's enough serving as the entertainment for the rest of the school. Let's go find our assigned dorms and get settled." Weiss said as Fenix looked up to notice most of the senior students and the rest of their fellow first years were all staring at them. Fenix's first thought was to threaten them. He decided against it since pissing off all of your upperclassmen on the first day probably wasn't the best idea.

The group turned to head out of the main hall and towards the dorms where the first year students were supposed to be housed. Once they found their assigned rooms they were surprised to find themselves all in the same hall. Teams RWBY and JNPR were across the halls from each other while team FABL's room was on team RWBY's side of the hall and right next door to them.

The rooms were pretty basic. Four single beds for the four students, a large window on the side across from the door, a dresser for each student and two large desks. The interesting part was the in room bathroom that the entire team was going to have to share. Also there were only two closets in the room so somebody was going to have to share with Alexis.

Fenix decided that his team would pretty much just set their stuff in the room and head down to the cafeteria for some well deserved dinner. They could figure out the specifics of who was sharing what after they had rested and got some food in them.

They got to the cafeteria to notice they were the first team of first years there. That was like throwing a slab of meat in the middle of a den of lions since all the upperclassmen were eyeing them the same way. They were still in their dirtied battle gear but had decided to leave their weapons in the room.

They got their food and sat down at a large empty table in the middle of the mess hall. Fenix couldn't help but think that was a deliberate move by the upperclassmen so they could all get a good view of the fresh meat. Soon after they were joined by teams RWBY and JNPR. Team RWBY all sat together on one side and JNPR did the same. Fenix and Liam were already sitting on the side team RWBY came to sit on and Alexis and Beau were on the side team JNPR sat down on. The three teams all sat as they awkwardly tried to stir up conversation while being completely aware of the looks they were getting from the older students. Fenix became especially aware of the way the older guys were looking at the girls at his table. It aggravated him to no end and it must have showed because Ruby spoke up.

"Hey big bro, you seem tense." She said with an ever innocent look that was completely oblivious to some of the looks she was getting from around the room.

"Yeah. Just don't like some of the looks you girls are getting." Fenix stated with some malice in his voice.

"Don't worry hot stuff. We can handle ourselves." Yang winked at Fenix.

"We aren't some damsels in distress who need some big strong man to protect us. If confronted we will put them down like the dogs they are." Weiss said with a disdainful tone. Fenix just sighed and explained himself.

"I understand that ladies. But you have to understand I was… trained… to treat women with respect. Seeing these hunters in training looking at you with those eyes… it just infuriates me. Plus I have this complex where I want to protect everybody I can, that includes you girls." He smiled at Weiss who seemed to understand.

"While that is sweet of you Fenix, please don't do anything rash." Alexis said as she put a hand on his to show she was worried about him.

"Well we are about to see, here comes one." Liam stated. The group turned to see a rather large upperclassman walking towards the group on the side with Fenix, Liam, and team RWBY. Once he got to the group he made the mistake of leaning over to speak to Ruby. Fenix was a little surprised they went for her first. That surprise quickly turned to unmitigated anger when he saw how uncomfortable Ruby appeared to be with the guy leaning over her.

"Hey cutie. How about you come over and sit with me and my team? We'd like to get to know you a little better." He tried to flash a smile but it was quickly demolished by the fist of one Yang Xiao Long. She threw a right hook into his face before Ruby could get a response in. He stumbled back before righting himself and feeling his features to make sure nothing was damaged. When he was done he looked back to Yang and scowled at her.

"You messed up now bitch." He clenched his fists as he took a step towards Yang. She moved to stand up but was too slow to do anything. Somebody was quicker to the punch than her for once.

Fenix had moved to get behind the upperclassman. Once he did he jabbed with both of his hands into each side of the bigger male's ribcage. This surprised the boy and he brought his arms down and tensed up to defend his core from any further attacks. Before he could turn to see who his attacker was, Fenix took his right hand and karate chopped the upperclassman in the neck. Thanks to his intense training in hand to hand combat, he knew exactly how to incapacitate somebody larger than him with a well aimed strike. As he knew it would be, Fenix's attack was placed perfectly, and the upperclassman fell over unconscious.

The silence in the room from what just happened was creepy. A smaller younger student standing over a larger senior student after a two strike combo that left the senior student completely knocked out. Before someone could say something to break the silence Fenix (ever the one for dramatics) decided to speak to the unconscious student. It was really more to get his point across to the rest of the student body, though he did secretly hope the boy remembered what he was about to say.

"You made two mistakes. One, hit on a girl who is like a little sister to me. Two, called one of my friends a demeaning term that was uncalled for. You make a third mistake… I'll personally make sure that next time you don't wake up." To add insult to injury, Fenix turned to pick up his dinner tray. He then dumped the remains of his dinner on the upperclassman. He then disposed of the tray and walked out of the dining hall. Before he exited he turned to see the rest of his group of friends getting up to follow him. Before they left, Yang turned around and kicked the unconscious upperclassman square in the crotch. A resounding groan of pain came from every male in the crowded hall as she sauntered over to Fenix. As she reached him she put an arm around his and forced him to walk arm and arm with her out of the hall. Once the group was out of the dining hall and heading back to their dorms, Fenix decided to break the silence.

"So, think that will get their attention off you girls and more on me?" He couldn't help but smirk a little bit as the rest of the group seemed to lighten up at the situation. Some were even chuckling a little.

"I dunno hot stuff but I can tell you it got my attention." Yang purred as she was still latched to Fenix's arm.

"Yaaaaannnnng!" Ruby whined. This seemed to break the dam as Pyrrha, Jaune, Alexis, and Liam started laughing out loud. Even Weiss and Blake were smiling. Seeing the group was in good spirits Fenix smiled. A thought then crept into his mind as the three teams reached their dorms.

"Hey I know we haven't unpacked and I don't know about you guys, but would you all want to have a friend building talk? Kind of like a team building exercise just with multiple teams?" The group seemed to ponder over what Fenix meant before, shockingly enough, Weiss spoke up.

"I think that sounds like an acceptable notion. Seeing as how it appears our three teams are going to be close for the rest of our stay here at Beacon."

"Great, well we only have the beds and two chairs so ya'll go grab your chairs and meet in our room. Wana say in about an hour so we can all clean up and get into some more comfortable clothing?" The group nodded in agreement and they all broke off to go into their respective rooms. Yang was reluctant to relinquish her hold on Fenix but was eventually dragged away by her three teammates.

After about an hour the three teams sat in a circle in team FABL's room. The other two teams had brought the chairs from their rooms. That allowed the entire group to sit in a sloppily thrown together circle. Some sat on the chairs while the remaining people sat on team FABL's beds.

"Alright so something that was suggested to us leaders to do with our teams was to go around and have everybody say something about their teammates that they know. Since there are three teams here I'm going to propose we expand on that a little. You still have to say something about one of your teammates but you also have to say something about somebody else who is in this room but not on your team as well as something about yourself. Sound fair?" After nobody seemed to disagree Fenix continued.

"Great! Well how about we start with Jaune here and I'll end. Any objections?" Nora's hand shot up.

"Oh oh! Can I start?" She begged.

"Ok I have no problem with that. Then we end with Pyrrha since she is sitting on your right?" Pyrrha nodded her agreement and Nora stood up.

"Hi! I'm Nora Valkyrie! Ren here has been my bestest buddy since I can remember!

I know Alexis is awesome because she likes pancakes! Oh, and my daddy is Odin Valkyrie the greatest weapon smith in Remnant!" With her little introduction a few things made more sense about Nora to Fenix. He had his questions for her though. Before he could say anything he noticed Liam tensed up next to him. He turned to see the bear faunus with a love-struck look on his face.

"Liam? You ok?" Fenix whispered to his partner so to not attract any extra attention. However it was hard to miss when the big bear faunus leaned down and put a hand over Fenix's ear to whisper back.

"She's a Valkyrie." First Fenix was confused with that simple statement. Then the lightbulb went off in his mind. The Valkyries were pretty much viewed as warrior goddesses in mythology of certain cultures. Liam must have come from a similar culture and thus viewed Nora along the lines of a princess or something. Fenix just gave a sly look to Liam who in return elbowed his partner in the side in an attempt to shut him up before he said anything. Their little scuffle gathered the attention of the rest of the people in the room. Under the awkward silent stares of ten pairs of eyes, Fenix coughed and then spoke up.

"Ok two things. One, your dad is THE Odin?" He paused to which Nora just nodded happily. "Wow, that's pretty awesome. He is an inspiration to all us aspiring weapon smiths."

"You make weapons too Fenix?" Ruby asked with an awestruck look.

"Oh yeah." Fenix simply replied to which Ruby started squealing with delight. Before she could go off on a rant Fenix moved to speak to Nora again.

"Two, you and Ren are JUST childhood friends?" The question made Ren roll his eyes and Nora just tilt her head in confusion.

"Of course silly! What else did you think we were?" Nora asked innocently.

"Well a couple?" Fenix asked.

"Oh pssshhh no! I mean he's handsome but we aren't together together." Fenix just looked to Liam again and waggled his eyebrows at him. Before Liam could retaliate, Ren decided it was his turn to go.

"Hello, my name is Lie Ren. My partner, Nora, should never be given caffeine under any circumstances. I have seen how Fenix treats my leader Jaune like a little brother. I prefer hand-to-hand combat with my multiple styles of martial arts when fighting." There was a pause after Ren finished but there was really nothing to question. Blake was sitting next to Ren so she went next.

"My name is Blake Belladonna. I know you should never mess with my partner's hair. I can tell that Ren is a very calm and collected person. Something about me is that I enjoy reading during my spare time. Questions?" Fenix shot her a look that read 'Really? That's all you're going to tell them at this point?' She just shot back with a 'shut up' look. Ruby had raised her hand but began asking her question before Blake could acknowledge her since she was distracted by Fenix.

"What types of books are your favorites to read?"

"A little bit of everything." Blake stated flatly. After a short pause it was Yang's turn. She hopped up and stood proudly as she began her introduction.

"Yang Xiao Long, the most badass girl you'll ever meet. I know my baby sister here is only fifteen being pushed ahead two years." She then began to ruffle Ruby's hair and Ruby tried to swat her away. Yang just chuckled and stopped to look at Fenix. Who was busy rolling his eyes at the fact Yang had apparently forgotten their little talk about bragging on her little sister too much. "And I know hot stuff here has a thing for us blonde girls." She finished as she flicked her hair for emphasis. This caused every pair of eyes to revert back to staring right at Fenix. He just shrugged in response but that wasn't enough for Jaune.

"What does she mean?" Jaune was visibly getting angry again. Yang decided to explain.

"Well we know about him and your twin sister." Yang paused for effect, allowing that information to soak in for some so they could understand why Jaune would be upset with this. After a moment she continued. "And then there was that little cutie that was getting all snuggly with you during the ceremony after initiation." Yang said the last statement with a bit of malice that was not missed by the females in the room. Fenix just shrugged it off again which caused Jaune to huff in annoyance and Yang to sit down with her arms crossed. After a few awkward moments of nobody saying anything, it was Ruby's turn.

"Hi, my name is Ruby Rose. My friend Blake here is currently reading a book about a man with two souls. Fenix here has a sniper rifle that I absolutely HAVE to see and test out. And I… like weapons." Yang snorted immediately.

"That's an understatement. She's an all-out weapons geek." She laughed as she wrapped her baby sister in a headlock. Ruby then expertly jabbed Yang in the side and slipped out of the hold. She grinned at her accomplishment as her sister just rubbed her sides begrudgingly.

"Sure red reaper, we can compare weapons sometime. I can probably offer some suggestions for modifications if you are interested." Fenix offered good naturedly. His words had the opposite affect he desired because Ruby looked offended.

"What makes you think you're better with weapons than I am?" Ruby asked challengingly. Much to her ire, Fenix just chuckled at her.

"Tell you what, I'll save that point for my little introduction part. Fair?" He received a disgruntled nod from Ruby. Yang just looked on in amusement. Weiss didn't wait for anyone else to speak up as she stood up. She curtsied as she began her introduction.

"I am Weiss Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. My partner Ruby has a semblance of speed but still excels at wasting time. Pyrrha, over there, is a four time Mistral Regional Champion which speaks wonders of her combat abilities." As per her attitude, Weiss's tone of voice changed from happy when she was talking about herself, annoyed when she was talking about Ruby, and praising when she spoke of Pyrrha. With her short introduction leaving no questions it moved on to the only girl on team FABL.

"My name is Alexis Hygeia. My partner here is Beau and he grew up on a farm in the outer regions of Mistral. I believe Nora and I share similar tastes in fashion so we should probably go shopping together. As for myself, well, I'm a bit OCD when it comes to cleanliness. That goes for how our room will look and for personal hygiene. In regards to that, I'm not sure how well things will go at first with me being on a team with three boys." The rest of the room looked at the three mentioned members of team FABL, except for Nora who was shaking Ren and talking excitedly about a shopping trip this upcoming weekend. Fenix just looked at Beau and Liam and muttered what all three of them were thinking.

"Well shit." His reaction got a nod from Beau and Liam while Jaune just patted Fenix's shoulder in support. The girls in the room all just giggled at the boy's reactions.

"Just how particular are you about this being clean darlin'?" Beau asked Alexis who blushed slightly at the way Beau called her "darlin'."

"Very." She replied with a smirk on her face.

"Well shit." Beau copied Fenix's reaction which turned many giggling girls into a full-fledged laughter that spread throughout the room. After a bit, everybody calmed down and it was Beau's turn.

"Name's Beau. Me and Liam here appear to be the only faunus in the room. I can tell that Yang and I have similar styles of hand-to-hand. That being we like to beat the shit outa stuff. And as for myself, my faunus features are a bit… rare." An eerie silence engulfed the room while everybody waited for Beau to explain on his features. When it became awkwardly obvious that he wasn't going to, Blake spoke up.

"Well are you going to explain about your features?" Beau just looked to Liam who shrugged.

"Come on Beau, show them." Alexis prodded him with her index finger to which Beau just smirked and sat up straight.

He extended his arms as if to showcase his hands to the group. All the sudden his hands morphed from what would be considered an average pair of human looking hands. His fingers from the proximal interphalangeal joints, expanded to look like they were claws. When they expanded there were no weird noises, breaking of any skin, or even discoloration. They just seemed to simply change and extend. Everybody was amazed at Beau's feature and he let them gaze for a bit. He noticed Weiss looked a little uncomfortable with it and so he reverted his hands back to their normal state. He then assured the rest of them that it didn't hurt and was simply a very rare trait for faunus to have. After a few questions about his fingers from a curious Ruby and Nora the talk died down. It was now Liam's turn.

"Greetings. My name is Liam Randgrid. I am from the continent of Menagerie. I did not think highly of my partner at first but I must admit he has impressed me. That is not something easily done so he has gained my respect. As for outside myself and my team, I will select Nora to speak of." He paused to make eye contact with the bubbly girl. "You, are a remarkable woman." Fenix and everybody else in the room seem to be thrown off guard by his simple statement. Fenix personally was expecting something way more than that. Apparently Nora wasn't fazed at all because she immediately replied.

"Awww thank you Liam!" She smiled cheerily. After Nora's reply the room fell into an awkward silence for a few seconds. Fenix tried to hold back his snide comment, he really did, but he felt an incredible urge to break the silence. So he just said the first thing he could think of.

"Wow you're really laying it on thick aren't you?" Fenix asked Liam. Who instead of replying verbally just reared back and slugged Fenix in the shoulder. Fenix knew he held back because he hadn't gone flying into the wall. But the force still knocked him sideways into Jaune. As Fenix and Jaune collected themselves Nora just looked confused.

"Laying what on?" She tilted her head to the side and Fenix inwardly asked himself why every girl did this. It only made them look cute when they did it. Maybe they did it on purpose for that very reason. Fenix snapped back to the conversation (or lack thereof) in the room. He noticed it was his turn so he stood up and politely bowed.

"My name is Fenix Fall. I can tell you that Alexis has one of the most unusual semblances I have ever come across. That's saying something by the way. I can tell you Jaune here has no brothers but he makes up for that with seven sisters." He paused to watch as everybody's eyes went wide. Even Yang and Ruby who already knew about it. Ruby then turned to look at him pleadingly so he continued on to the part about himself. "As for myself, I am a certified class five weapon smith." Ruby's eyes went wide from adoration, Nora just grinned wildly, and the rest of them just looked at him with a mixture of confusion and disbelief.

"What's that mean exactly?" Beau spoke up.

"Basically there are different tiers of weapon smiths. Level one, or the lowest level, are only licensed for making training swords and basic hunting materials. It goes up to level five who have the authority to make basically whatever weapon they want." Fenix explained to his teammate.

"Oh oh! What's the coolest thing you know how to make?" Nora asked excitedly.

"Well, my personal favorite is lasers. On the plus side, come on, they're lasers. They can cut through anything and can make even the most basic of weapons deadly. The downside is that they take a painful amount of time to perfect in a weapon. Each one being kind of a special case on its own." Fenix then chuckled.

"You have no idea how hard I tried to make my swords into lasers swords." He got a few raised eyebrows from that.

"That idiotic idea sounds like something straight out of science fiction." Weiss stated seeming to not believe Fenix.

"So cooool! Did you do it?!" Ruby asked as she clenched her fists in front of her face excitedly.

"I have ideas of how to, but sadly we just don't have the technology for it… yet." Fenix stated as he adopted a smirk with his last word. Pyrrha then coughed to get the group's attention with her own question.

"Pardon, but is that what you might have done for Atlas when you mentioned you had worked for them before?" Much to everybody's surprise Jaune showed the most interest in Pyrrha's question.

"You worked for Atlas?" He asked as he quickly turned to fully face his old friend.

"Well where do you think I went when I left four years ago?" Fenix questioned back before turning to face Pyrrha. "Yes, and I suppose I can explain a little bit. You know the Atlesian Knights?" He paused to notice Liam's and Blake's eyes go wide. "I designed their weapons and the systems to work them."

"Huh, that is impressive Fenix." Ren commented with a brief nod towards the orange haired boy. Fenix just nodded in response before speaking up again.

"Thank you but how about we move forward so we can finish this up? Jaune it's your turn." Jaune shook his head in realization before starting

"Hello, my name is Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue." Ruby put her head in her hand and sighed exasperatedly. Jaune then went to finish his opening line. "Ladies love it." Yang snorted.

"Ha! Do they?" She asked which got a giggle from her sister and a surprised look from Jaune. Realizing there was no good comeback he just pushed forward with his introduction.

"Uhh… well anyways Pyrrha here unlocked my aura so I bet she's pretty knowledgeable about that sorta stuff. Fenix and I have been friends since I was seven. And, umm, I'm part of one of two sets of twins in my family." He laughed nervously at the last part.

"Your poor mother." Blake said.

"What?" Jaune asked with a confused tone of voice.

"Seven children and two sets of twins? God that sounds horrible." The faunus in hiding explained as every female in the room nodded in agreement.

"Oh it has done nothing to her figure. She still looks like she did before she had any of them if the old pictures are accurate. She rules that house and you do not want to get on her bad side. It's actually pretty fascinating to watch." Fenix laughed as Jaune paled again.

"Oh I am so dead." He seemed to remember the pickle he was in with his family.

"Oh please, her baby boy is her pride and joy. You just need to properly apologize and remind her that this is what you want." Fenix reminded the blonde boy. If spending all that time with the Arc family had taught him anything, it was that out of all the children Jaune was the one who could get away with something. He just had to beg his mom and he got his way.

"You think so?" Jaune hopefully asked him. Fenix just gave him an 'are you serious?' look to which Jaune just chuckled. "Oh yeah, I forgot you kind of helped me get out of some trouble before." Fenix just smiled and looked to Pyrrha.

"Hello again! For those of you who don't know me, my name is Pyrrha Nikos. I can tell Jaune here is going to be a great leader. I've known Weiss for two years. We met at my second Mistral Championship. Something odd about me is that I don't exactly like my appointed celebrity status being a four time champion. I just want to make friends here. Not be held up on a pedestal." After she finished, everybody seemed to understand and not question her just wanting to be treated as a normal student.

"Well, that's it for tonight guys! We can talk more tomorrow if you want. I think your teams should get back to your dorms and get some much deserved sleep." Everybody nodded or grunted in agreement as they collected their chairs and headed out the door back to their rooms. Ruby stayed behind and shuffled nervously in the doorway once everybody else had left.

"What's on your mind red reaper?" Fenix asked.

"Could I ask you something Fenix?" She asked with pleading eyes. Like he could say no to that puppy dog pout.

"Be right back guys." He waved to his team as he escorted Ruby out into the hall. He looked down the hall to see teams WBY and JNPR unlocking their respective doors.

"Hey Yang! Got a second?" He asked as the girl looked up confused. That only lasted for a second as she saw Ruby and Fenix standing together. She held up one finger to signal she would be right there as she carried the chairs back into her room.

"Alright, what's up little sis?" Fenix asked Ruby who looked down at her feet. She mumbled something that Fenix couldn't make out. He noticed Yang walking their way now so he asked Ruby to repeat it a little louder this time so they both could hear it.

"Why did those boys come after me today?" Ruby asked almost apprehensively. Fenix secretly was wondering the same thing. Out of the four girls on team RWBY, Ruby was the least obvious one to go after. However, there was qualities about her that he could see people noticing about her. Fenix and Yang shared a quick look before Fenix decided to speak up.

"Because you are a special girl Ruby." Both Yang and Ruby looked at him confused as to what he meant. He decided to elaborate. "You are a prodigy. You are probably one of the youngest students ever admitted much less appointed team leader in the history of this school. You decapitated a freaking Nevermore in initiation. And, let's be honest, you're cute. All those things that are going to attract guys to you. That's why you have two protective older siblings here to help you out. If at any point you want me to back off just say so though. Ok?"

During his whole speech, Ruby and Yang's faces slowly changed from confused to a more pleased look. Once he had finished, the two sisters shared a look and then smiled. Ruby ran in and hugged the fire wielder tightly.

"Thanks Fenix." She said quietly.

"Yeah, I couldn't have said that any better myself." Yang spoke with adoration in her voice.

"Anytime little reaper." He replied as he gently ruffled Ruby's hair. She then let go and skipped to her room in a much better mood than she had been a few moments ago.

Once Ruby had entered the room Yang leaned in towards Fenix. She was coming at him face first so it wasn't hard for the boy to guess what she was going for. Quickly he put his hand up to block her attempt at a kiss. His palm caught her lips before they got to his face. Her eyes widened in surprise at being stopped. As he kept his hand on her mouth to discourage any further attempts, she glared at him with annoyance. Fenix just smirked at how surprisingly cute the look was.

"Down girl." He stated as he gently pushed her face further away from him. She just huffed at him as he turned to walk into his dorm. He stopped in the open doorway and turned his head to look at her.

"Goodnight." With that he walked in and closed the door behind him. The room was dark since his three other teammates had already crawled into bed. He just smiled as he activated his semblance so he could find the bed they left him for the night. He located it but before he went to it he went to his bag to grab his aura inhibitors. He strapped them on and crawled into bed, turning his semblance off as he reached his place of slumber. As he closed his eyes and let sleep take him, he smiled. He was truly happy he had decided to come here and for his new friends. For the first time in a long time, he was excited for what his future held.

 **(A/N): Alright guys that was chapter 10. What do you think? Favorite/follow/review if you haven't yet! The replies really help me know if I'm doing an ok job.**


	11. Chapter 11

**(A/N): Once again I find myself apologizing for taking so long to get this out. This is the first chapter of the second act of the story and it took a little planning on my part to get my thoughts together on the exact path I want to take you on. Hopefully at the end of this chapter you will have a clearer understanding as to why Fenix is the way he is.**

Chapter 11: Order Up

"THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY!" Fenix said excitedly as he and his team left Port's class alongside team RWBY. It had been four days since their initiation day into Beacon Academy and the end of the very long first week was finally in sight for the first years.

"Yeah I'm going to go and do nothing but relax the rest of the day. How about you hot stuff? Do you have any plans for tonight? Say a **HOT** date?" Yang asked Fenix in a sultry tone of voice. Fenix just rolled his eyes at the god awful pun. This had been the pattern for the past week ever since he had stood up for Ruby. Yang would make a not so subtle flirtatious comment towards Fenix and he would either shut it down or ignore her outright. It was starting to get on everybody else's nerves to some extent and it was obvious to him. Her continuous flirting seemed to annoy her own team and Jaune mostly. His team along with Ren and Pyrrha were indifferent because Fenix really never responded. Nora, much to the vexation of everybody else, found it hilarious and egged Yang on as much as she could. Instead of him having to fend off the buxom blonde this time, the young red reaper came to his rescue in the way that only she could.

"Yaaaaaang! Knock it off!" Ruby whined.

"Yeah! Besides we still have another class before we are free." Jaune said as he and his team approached their sister teams. His statement was met with a bewildered look from his fellow blonde of the group.

"What do you mean?! I thought we were done!" Yang half yelled in a distraught tone. The idea of having one more class between her and her weekend freedom did not sound appealing to her at all apparently. Fenix just chuckled at her child like reaction while Ruby spoke up again.

"YOU, are done. WE, have a leader's class that every team leader in Beacon has to take every Friday afternoon. We will be taught by Headmaster Ozpin himself and get tutored by the older team leaders." Ruby pointed to Fenix, Jaune, and Herself as she explained to her older sister. Yang had a relieved look like she had just dodged a bullet. Then something happened that made all twelve of the students freeze in fear.

"Might I remind you three that said class begins in ten minutes? I suggest you not be late to your first leadership meeting." The group turned in unison to see none other than Professor Goodwitch standing directly behind them with her arms crossed and her wand/riding crop out. Before anybody could say something stupid and get them all in trouble, Fenix grabbed Jaune and Ruby by the arms leading them in the direction of their last class.

"You heard her guys let's go!" With that the three leaders left their teams. The other nine headed off in the direction of their dorms because they didn't feel like upsetting the disciplinarian before their weekend started. Once the three leaders got to the designated room, they found themselves in a familiar situation. The only empty seats were in the very front row of the lecture hall and closest to the desk where Ozpin was currently sitting. Fenix just sighed as he led the group to the front and willingly took the seat directly in front of Ozpin. Ruby sat next to him and Jaune sat on her other side which just so happened to seat another first year student.

Cardin Winchester. Fenix didn't especially like what little he had seen of Cardin and his team in their first week. They were self-centered, cocky, mischievous, immature, and all around unpleasant to be around. For these reasons, the other first year students (especially the females) stayed away from them. He had heard rumors of them being bullies but had never witnessed it firsthand. A tapping of a cane on the floor brought his attention back to the front of the room where Ozpin was now standing.

"Good afternoon. For our first leadership meeting we will have two simple tasks to accomplish today. First, as I'm sure you all have been doing repeatedly with it being the first week of classes; we will go around the room introducing ourselves. State your name, the names of your team and its members, as well as a little something about yourself. We will begin with our new first year leaders here up front." He finished motioning to Fenix. Suddenly the seating arrangement of the room made a little more sense to him. He sighed as he resigned to his fate as being the first victim of the classic stand in front of the class and introduce yourself routine. He stood up and turned to face the rest of the classroom. He bowed respectfully as he began.

"Fenix Fall, leader of team F.A.B.L. pronounced fable. The other three members are Liam Randgrid, Beau McClellan, and Alexis Hygeia. I was actually enrolled to start last year but a few things in my personal life came up and delayed my entrance into this academy by a year." With that he sat down and Ruby immediately hopped up from her seat. She turned and waved to the upperclassmen as she began.

"Hi! My name is Ruby Rose. My teammates are Yang Xiao-Long, Weiss Schnee, and Blake Belladonna. Together we form team RWBY! And before you ask, yes it does cause some confusion." She paused as some of the upperclassman chuckled at her admittance. "Well about me… I guess you could say I'm a bit of a nerd for weapons." She finished rather shy and quiet. Completely the opposite of how she started out. Almost as if she, the introvert, had just realized that she was the center of attention. She quickly sat down and pulled her beloved hood up over her head to cover her face and sat back down. Jaune then stood up to do his part and rescue Ruby from her embarrassed state.

"The name's Jaune Arc." He started with an all too familiar confident tone to his voice.

'Oh Hell. He better not be doing his signature opener to impress the ladies.' Fenix thought to himself.

"Short."

'No.'

"Sweet."

'NO.'

"Rolls off the tongue."

"Don't you finish that phrase." Fenix didn't realize he had said it out loud until Jaune looked at him with a surprised look. His eyes widened as he realized he had in fact accidently called out his best friend before anybody else knew why he was doing it. Well save for Ruby who was sitting between them trying to stifle her giggles. Fenix pulled her hood down in a playful jester before explaining to Jaune.

"Remember how that turned out the first couple of times you used that line?" He gave a look to Jaune daring him to challenge him on this one. He had overheard his blonde companion using that signature line on multiple girls during their first week here at school and he had been shot down each time. Jaune had a blank look of confusion on his face until he saw the light bulb go off in his head. He mouthed "Ooohhhh" to Fenix as he sheepishly admitted defeat and moved on with the introduction. Fenix swore he heard the Headmaster give a muffled snort in amusement behind him.

"Heh heh, well I'm the leader of team JNPR. My partner is Pyrrha Nikos and our other two teammates are Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. As you can tell me and this guy have been friends forever so he tends to treat me like a little brother." Jaune finished motioning to Fenix.

"Someone has to keep an eye on you." Fenix quipped back with a smirk. A few more chuckles arose from the crowd at their lighthearted banter. The next one up was Cardin. He forcefully pushed Jaune down into his seat as he stood up to take his turn.

"My name is Cardin Winchester. Leader of team CRDL. My 'mates are Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark. I know that my team will no doubt be the strongest team in the first year class." He finished with an overconfident smirk that he gave towards Fenix, Ruby, and Jaune. He was met with three sets of eyes rolling simultaneously. Fenix had no doubt their three teams could decimate Cardin's team no problem.

The rest of the introductions went rather quickly. Once it got to the upperclassmen they just flew through their intros with ease. At one point Fenix learned that one of the third year team leaders was a newly appointed leader since their original leader had been killed on a mission. It brought a somber mood to the room out of respect for their fallen comrade. The introduction portion of the class ended with a girl in a beret in the back of the room. Fenix swore he saw her giving him weird looks behind her sunglasses that she for some reason wore indoors. After she finished all attention was brought back to the front to the Headmaster.

"Now that you all have the simple task out of the way, let's move on to the final portion of our little meeting. Each first year leader will come up with a two person combined attack on a hypothetical opponent of your choosing. The two people must be from your team. Once you have drawn up your attack you will present the plans to me and I will load them in the holographic projection screen at the front of the room. The upperclassmen will view your attacks and then each year will vote as a collective which team's attack they view as the most efficient. Should your team be voted the winners, you and your teammates will receive a one-time-use-only homework pass on an assignment of your team's unanimous decision. Are there any questions?" He was met with all the first years shaking their heads signaling that they understood the assignment.

"Good. Now you have ten minutes to draw up your plan and turn it in to me. You may begin." With that the first year students pulled out their supplies and began scribbling away. After a few minutes Cardin got up and was surprisingly the first to turn his attack plan into the Headmaster. Ruby was the next as she zipped up in front of Ozpin using her semblance. Eventually Fenix was the last to turn his in and the Headmaster began typing in commands to the holographic projector.

First, Cardin's plan showed up. The screen showed a holographic Cardin taking his mace and using it like a bat to hit one of his teammates. His teammate then started spinning as he held his daggers out in front of him. It basically made him look like a flying drill head as he hit a Beowulf and pierced right through it. Fenix had to admit it wasn't a bad idea, except for the massive amount of damage a hit from Cardin's mace would do to his smaller companion.

Next, Ruby's plan popped up on the screen. It featured Yang and Ruby facing off against a Deathstalker. The two girls stood a long distance away from their supposed enemy. The holographic Ruby hopped on Yang's back and Yang began charging. As Yang gained momentum she cocked her arm back ready for a punch while she was still a good distance away. All the sudden she shot forward at incredible speeds and stopped behind the Deathstalker. A path of burning rose petals was all that remained to show where they had been. Fenix could see the petals seemed to be coming off of Ruby who was still latched on to Yang's back. He looked to see the Deathstalker had a huge dent in its forehead armor. The Grimm was either unconscious or dead from blunt force trauma. Fenix couldn't tell honestly but that wasn't what caught his eye in that whole display. He was more interested in Ruby being able to speed boost other people like that.

"You can do that?" He asked as he turned towards her.

"Yeah. Me and Yang have tried that attack before actually and it works pretty good against bigger Grimm." She replied sheepishly as Fenix began thinking of attack moves he could use with that knowledge. As he was thinking he missed another first year team's combined attack. When he snapped out of his thoughts he looked around to see not many upperclassmen seemed all that impressed yet.

Next, it was Jaune's attack strategy. The screen came to life and showed Nora and Ren standing before a pack of Beowulves. The pack started charging in a tight formation. Ren moved to get behind Nora and then shot her in the back with his pistols. The rounds appeared to be electric dust rounds from the yellow splatter the rounds gave off. Instead of shocking the girl into unconsciousness, she began to glow. She then activated her weapon which was a giant war hammer and charged at the pack. As she reached them she took one wide swing. The first Beowulf she hit went careening sideways from the force of her hammer. The collision kind of reminded Fenix of how the pins fly backwards when a bowling ball strikes them. When it was all said and done, her one swing had hit and thrown each Beowulf in the pack completely off the screen. Silence engulfed the room as it appeared Jaune's attack had gathered some attention from the upperclassmen. Fenix just made a mental note to never taze Nora and always stay on her good side. Next, the class had to sit through and embarrassingly awful plan from one of the other first year teams and then another one that was simplistic yet surprisingly effective.

Finally it was Fenix's team's turn. The projector showed Liam and Beau facing a lone human foe. This caught the class's attention since the only enemy their plans had been against was the creatures of Grimm. Beau approached first and made an exaggerated hunched over pose so as to make eye contact with the person. Once the person locked eyes with Beau they froze. Liam then walked up and drew his zweihander sword. As he got close his eyes went milky white. The holographic Liam then swung upwards and with one single swing decapitated the enemy human character. The holographic screen faded out and the room had a stunned silence until the tapping of a cane broke it.

"Mr. Fall, would you care to elaborate to your fellow leaders your tactic?" Ozpin asked with a solemn voice as Fenix moved to stand. He really wasn't surprised to be singled out after the viewing of his strategy.

"Of course Headmaster. My teammates represented by this attack would be Beau and Liam. Beau has a semblance of paralysis which he has nicknamed 'Death glare.' Basically he stares at you and you are frozen. Liam, the big guy, has the semblance of negation. He focuses on you, and your aura and semblance are completely shut off. On top of that he is incredibly strong. So, you freeze the person so they can't move which effectively takes their ability to defend themselves away. Then you knock out their aura and semblance so they can't withstand the hit. You could take out a fully trained hunter with minimal effort with a strategy like this." Fenix finished up as some of the upperclassmen paled at his revelation of Beau and Liam's combined semblances. The looks of shock he was receiving from his friends far outclassed the looks he was receiving from the upperclassmen however.

"Very good, although I feel you should elaborate on the subject of why you chose this specific opponent versus the Grimm your fellow first year leaders chose." Ozpin explained to the young fire wielder. He knew the young innocent mind of Ms. Rose would have a hard time understanding this but she needed to hear it. The sooner the better in her case. He would rather her be exposed to it in a classroom environment than on the battlefield for the first time. He also knew that Mr. Arc needed to understand that although he was a born leader, it would not always be an easy road with simple decisions.

"Honestly sir some of us already know that Grimm are not the only evil we face in this world." He paused to look to his elder leaders and received a few nods in confirmation. He then spied the girl with the beret in the back. Something about her caught his eye this time and when he realized what it was his eyes widened in shock.

Her necklace.

'I've seen that exact beaded and chain linked necklace before' he thought to himself.

She caught his surprise and in return lowered her sunglasses to shoot a stern glare at him. He got the message and turned to look back at the headmaster. Ozpin raised his eyebrow when he saw Fenix's face. Fenix quickly thought up an excuse to cover for his shock.

"I wasn't aware we were allowed to wear sunglasses with our school uniforms." Fenix said as he wiped the surprised look off his face and replaced it with a stoic one.

"I permit each student to add their own personal additions to their uniform as long as it does not break the dress code. " Ozpin replied not falling for the lie but brushing it off to not call the young man out in front of his peers. Secretly he had no problem with what the student wore but he had lost that argument with Glenda long ago. He did not feel like incurring her wrath once again for a previously discussed issue.

"Now Mr. Fall, would you kindly explain for your fellow first year leaders just what you mean by other evils in the world?" Ozpin asked to move the lesson forward. Fenix turned to see concerned looks on Jaune and Ruby's faces. Fenix just sighed as he began.

"Ok, show of hands, who here has defended civilians?" He was met with everybody in the room raising their hands and a few sets of eyes rolling.

"Alright good. Now, keep your hand up if you have ever lost one of the people you were protecting." Roughly half of the students in the room dropped their hands. Ruby lowered her hand and looked sad when she looked around to see who still had their hands raised. The most noticeable to her were Fenix as well as Headmaster Ozpin.

"Next, how many of you have killed a Grimm before?" Once again everybody's hands were raised.

"That was to be expected since we are all here. Now, how many of you have even fought a person that was a life or death situation? Not a sanctioned fight or a spar." Fenix said as he emphasized the words "a person" heavily. A few hands went down, most noticeably Jaune's.

"Alright, here's the tough one. How many of you have taken a life? Not Grimm." Hands went down. At the end he counted seven hands still raised including his own. The two hands still in the air that interested him was Ozpin's and the girl in the beret in the back. He turned to see Ruby looking unhappy that people in an academy for training protectors of the people would have blood on their hands.

"Alright, last and most important question." Ruby perked up to look at Fenix. "How many of the ones who have killed… had to do it for the greater good. Whether it be in self-defense, to protect or save another's life, or any other instance that you feel is somewhat justifiable in the grand scheme of things." Ruby looked to see all seven of the hands of those who had killed still raised. She took some comfort in knowing that about the people here, especially Fenix and Headmaster Ozpin. Fenix noticed her demeanor brightened up a little so he decided to wrap it up on a somewhat good note. Well, as good as it could be with such a sensitive topic for those in the room. Fenix then nodded to Ozpin who motioned for the rest of the students to put their hands down.

"That is the key difference between us and them. They kill for chaos, for gain, for pleasure. We, kill only as a last resort. To protect those who would be victims themselves if we didn't. Sometimes killing your enemy is a necessary evil, but once again it is only used as a last resort." He stressed that last part as he sat down and turned to face Ozpin again. The Headmaster nodded in approval towards Fenix. Then he addressed the rest of the class.

"Very eloquently put young man. Now does anybody have anything to add, or bring up for debate on this topic?" Nobody said anything so Ozpin continued.

"Well then let's get back to the reason for our little tangent shall we? Second year leaders met in the back, third year leaders meet on that end, fourth year leaders meet on the opposite end over there, and first year leaders sit up front here with me. You have five minutes to make your decisions." With that the entire room shifted into motion as the older students moved to meet with their groups. The first years were already in the front so they didn't have to move. Fenix really wanted to make small talk with Ruby and Jaune to help lighten the mood. He turned to see they were both looking down in silence. He guessed they were thinking hard about the talk that had just happened. Out of respect he didn't interrupt and elected to sit in silence as well. Soon the five minutes were up and the familiar sound of a cane tapping on the floor brought everybody's attention back to the Headmaster.

"Now then, which strategy have you elected as the most effective?" Ozpin looked up to the second year students first.

"Fall's." The beret girl spoke up. Ozpin then looked to the third years.

"Same." A boy spoke up from the middle of the group.

"We agree with them, Fall's strategy." A girl from the fourth year leaders spoke up before Ozpin had the chance to acknowledge it was their turn.

"Well then, congratulations Mr. Fall on a job well done." He began to clap as the rest of the students followed suit.

"That is all for today. A reminder that family weekend will start two weekends from today. You are dismissed. Mr. Fall please come claim the slips for you and your team." With that the rest of the students began to file out of the room as the Headmaster turned around to write down Fenix and his teammates names on the slips. When he walked up the Headmaster handed him the slips.

"It was indeed a very good idea Mr. Fall. I must commend you on thinking outside the box on your opponent as well."

"Thank you sir. Sorry the class took a bit of a dark turn there." Fenix replied somewhat apprehensively.

"Fear not, it was a necessary lesson for some of your classmates. And you put it on terms that they could both understand and agree with. For that I am grateful that you took charge of the room and led the lesson. Now go enjoy the weekend with your friends." Fenix nodded his head respectfully as he turned to walk out of the classroom.

"Oh and Mr. Fall?" Fenix turned to face the Headmaster with one hand on the door.

"Kindly remind Judith and Joseph to keep their daughters in check when they come to visit young Mr. Arc." The Headmaster had the faintest of grins on his face as he said it. Turns out the boy was indeed a natural leader outside of the battle field as he had suspected.

"Will do Headmaster." Fenix smiled back. He then turned and exited the classroom. He had made it out of the door and just turned in the direction of his dorm room, when a voice stopped him.

"Nice idea you had in there killer." He turned to see the girl in the beret and sunglasses leaning up against the wall of the classroom they had just left.

"Please tell me that is a nickname and not a label for the session we just had in there." Fenix asked her silently praying it was the former.

"Relax, it's just my little nickname for you." She chuckled as she pushed herself off the wall and walked to stand directly in front of Fenix. She pushed her sunglasses down to reveal her dark chocolate eyes as she examined him from head to toe. She then brought her eyes back up so they met his.

"It's not often you meet a member of The Order in public after all." Fenix immediately tensed up at the mention of The Order. His reaction seemed to amuse her as she smirked at him.

"Relax killer I'm not here to drag you back or anything like that. I do need to check though. Are you here because of their bidding or for your own reasons?" Fenix exhaled a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding.

"I am no longer a member of The Order. I actually haven't been for almost two years." He tried to relax himself to show the sincerity of his statement. If she was a member or former member of The Order herself she would doubt he simply got out. He had only heard rumors of a handful of people getting out when he had successfully done it.

"So… which sect were you in?" She asked with a smirk. Fenix paused for a moment completely dumbfounded that she was so calm about this.

"Sanctorum de tenebris." He mumbled.

"Come again?" She asked. He couldn't tell from her voice if it was sincere or sarcastic so he went with sincere.

"Saints…Saints of the Shadows." He said with a sullen tone as if he was ashamed of it.

"Black ops division huh? Gotta say you're the first one from that group I've met."

"Really? I mean there weren't a lot of us but you never met any of them?" Fenix asked slightly surprised.

"Not that I can remember." She stated flatly.

"Oh, well what division are you in?" Fenix asked, his curiosity had been successfully piqued by this point.

"Used to be Malleus Dei."

"Really? Heavy weapons? Forgive me but you don't exactly seem the part Ms.…?" He figured introductions were in order at this point as he held out his hand.

"Coco Adel." She responded by grabbing his hand with a vice like grip. He just turned it over and kissed the back of her hand as was his usual greeting for the female gender. He looked up to see an eyebrow quirked up above her sunglasses.

"Yeah that's a bit of a dated custom here Killer. A little over the top for just meeting a girl. My advice is to stick to the handshake unless you want them to think you are asking for their hand in marriage." Fenix was a little surprised that this was the first time hearing this. Especially from all the friends he had already made that he had done that to. A thought then crossed his mind that caused him to look at her questionably.

"You mean you weren't taught to do that upon greeting somebody?"

"No. Nobody our age does anything like that for a standard greeting." A sly grin crept onto her face as she saw his expression. It was a nice combination of shocked, embarrassed, and irritated. Suddenly this unique expression disappeared and was replaced with a smile as he began chuckling to himself

"Augh, she got me."

"Come again?" Coco asked now that her curiousity was piqued.

"My Master."

"Your Master is the one who taught you that THAT was a normal greeting?" She asked skeptically.

"More like she drilled it into my head. Anytime I didn't do that when I was introduced to a lady, she would put me through a hellish set of drills or just make me spar with her and beat the ever loving crap out of me. Ah memories." He finished with a sarcastic smile and an eye roll. Coco was trying (and failing) to remain stoic during this boy's story as her grin turned into a smile.

"So you're seriously telling me she did that to you to make you more of an old school gentleman?" Coco was having a hard time believing this wasn't an act.

"No. I'm saying she did this on purpose with the intent of embarrassing me when I went out on my own. She acts like a complete stone cold hard ass but she has a mischievous sense of humor. She will act like something is completely normal and when you believe her you make a fool out of yourself." Coco gave him a sympathetic pat on the back to show she understood and felt bad for him. She couldn't imagine having to put up with those types of mind games from your Master for all those years. Suddenly Fenix saw a mischievous look (much like one his old Master had) come across Coco's face after a few moments of silence.

"Actually, that gives me an idea Fenix. I'd like for you to do that 'gentlemanly' greeting of yours one more time. My teammate is a cute little rabbit faunus who is extremely shy. Her name is Velvet and I would love to see her reaction to your little introductory move. If you'd do that solid for me I'd give you an I.O.U. Fair enough?" Fenix playful side took over as he smirked in return.

"Deal, as long as you answer a few questions about our shared interests of our past. Fair?" Fenix asked. He thought it was a fair deal since he wanted to know exactly how she got out. He thought his was a special case of sorts so he was interested in her story.

"Cashing in already are we? Oh well works for me. Whatever questions you can squeeze in before we get to your dorm I'll answer, Killer." She stated as she motioned for him to lead the way to his dorm room. Fenix started in the direction and Coco fell into step alongside him.

"So how did you get out?"

"Right to the point huh? And here I was expecting a little foreplay." Fenix snorted at her comment and just gave her a "really?" look. She looked actually surprised that she hadn't gotten a bigger reaction out of him.

"Really? I thought that was a good one. Oh well, when I turned seventeen the council called me before them. They said that my loyalty had come into question since I wasn't exactly subtle about my displeasure with The Order. Normally they would execute somebody wanting out but being the great granddaughter of a former council member has its perks. They gave me the option of a transfer to another sector or division of my choice, or I could 'leave and find my own way in this world' as they put it. I chose to leave and got accepted into Beacon. Now how about you? What's your story?" Fenix admitted that descendants of the council members of old were shown a lot of favoritism so her story checked out in that regard. He was slightly surprised that she had no problem voicing her grievances while still a part of The Order. They had a nasty habit of publically torturing and executing any who were found to not be "true believers of the way." He slightly shook his head at the thought of giving somebody details about his being relieved of duty. But, she had given him a short version of his story so he didn't see the harm in reciprocating the gesture.

"I had only been in for two years when an issue came up. It was a circumstance that broke the Saint's code of honor. As you may have heard, if one cannot stick to the code they are expelled. That usually means executed but during the trial my mentor showed up in my defense. She reminded them of one of The Order's own codes. The code of morals." At this Coco raised an eyebrow.

"Due to my circumstances the council didn't have any other option than to strip me of my affiliation with the Saints and The Order. I was then sent out in exile. Right after I got a real good job in the Atlesian Military. I spent the last two years there and now I'm here." He spread his arms wide as if to showcase his surroundings to her.

"That's quite the story Killer." Coco finally spoke after a short awkward silence.

"Thank you. What are the odds?" He chuckled.

"That two former members of The Order not only magically managed to get out alive but also just so happen to be attending the same academy?" She asked with a bit of amusement in her voice.

"Yeah." Fenix simply replied.

"Honestly not high. My team is never going to believe this." Coco said as she shook her head in disbelief. Fenix, however, froze mid-step.

"They know?!" He half shouted. His surprise did not catch Coco off guard though, as she just continued to strut on.

"Of course." She replied.

"You know how much danger that puts them in right? I'm sure you know how The Order deals with people who discover their existence." The panic in Fenix's voice was almost palpable as he jogged to catch up with his companion.

"First, they aren't talking. I made sure to emphasize what would happen if they were found out. Second, and this is purely just to give you a heads up, if you have faunus on your team you might want to be careful. There are apparently some wide spread rumors that our organization is out to kill all faunus. I didn't know and it wasn't the smoothest of beginnings for me and my teammate. Third, and I can't stress this enough, secrets amongst friends and teammates always leads to trouble." She held up fingers to show him which point she was on as she explained her reasoning to him. Fenix just walked alongside her in silence as he pondered what he had just been told. He could see the point that telling them would give the sense that all aspects of their lives would be open to each other. However, the notion to protect people was always something he had a strong belief in. Especially if it would mean his past would come back to haunt him and cause harm to his friends. Coco looked over to see him deep in thought. Beneath her sunglasses she rolled her eyes at him as she spoke up to break him from the debate he was having in his mind.

"I know what you're thinking Killer. You need to have more faith in your team. They wouldn't have gotten into this school if they couldn't stand up for themselves. I know you think it's a longshot, but imagine what would happen if they found out about your past from somebody else besides you." Fenix had to admit she had a point there. He turned to see her giving him a look over her sunglasses. He just nodded in admittance to her that she had made it clear what the better option was. She just pushed her sunglasses back up and smiled.

"Good, because I believe we're here." Fenix looked up to see they were indeed in the hallway of his dorm room. The only reason Coco knew it was the right place was because all eleven of his friends were currently peering out of their doorways at the duo walking down the hallway. Fenix just sighed as he knew some berating was going to be coming his way for this.

"Nice talk Killer. See ya around." Coco said as she turned around to walk away. As she did she gave him a quick smack on the ass and dropped her sunglasses to give him a quick flirtatious wink.

"It was nice to meet you Coco." He said to her with an exasperated huff at her getting him into more teasing. She continued to saunter down the hallway as Fenix turned to face his friends.

"So what are you all doing waiting for me?" He asked as they emerged from their doorways and started crowding around him.

"Ruby wishes to speak with you." Weiss spoke up first.

"So does Jaune-Jaune!" Nora exclaimed like it was the weirdest coincidence in the world.

"As for us, WE have some things to discuss regarding the cleanliness of our room." Alexis spoke glaring at the three boys on her team while emphasizing the word "we." The other two males of their team just groaned as Fenix sighed.

"Ok we can talk about your OCD tendencies in a little bit Alexis. First we need to have a serious team chat. Also, Ruby and Jaune would you please join us? It may answer some of your questions." Fenix's tone didn't leave any room for discussion. He received nods from the five mentioned and they started walking into team FABL's room.

"Wait why just them? Why not the rest of us?" Yang all but whined. Fenix figured she was just using the rest of the group being left out to mask her being a little offended he didn't offer her to join the select group.

"Because honestly the less of you that know this, the better. Ruby and Jaune got a small glimpse of it in our leadership class and they are also your team leaders. If any of you have the rights to know this information, it's them." Fenix was dead serious about this and they could all tell. Yang huffed and stomped off angry that Fenix didn't think she deserved to know. Fenix just ignored her as he walked into his room and shut the door behind him once the select five had walked in. He made sure to lock the door to discourage any sudden interruptions by a certain angry blonde haired girl next door.

"Ok first, Liam, turn my scroll onto some music over by the wall that connects ours and team RWBY's room." Liam did so and a couple seconds after the music started they heard a muffled "Goddammit!" coming from the other side of the wall. Fenix's team all snickered at Yang's misfortune before turning to a somber state as Fenix got ready to start them off.

Yang's constant flirting with Fenix had quickly become the running joke of their group. She was always trying to catch his attention by methods that seemed lewd yet completely typical for what everybody knew of her. Things like: showing off a little extra skin, grabbing onto him anytime they were near each other, and being extremely nosy into his personal life. The last one really irked the fire wielder seeing as anytime he had tried to so much as message Neo he would have a curious set of lilac eyes peering over his shoulder as to who he was talking to. Mind you she did this to anyone he tried to text but the only one he would get defensive about was Neo's. He (so far) had quick enough reflexes to make sure she never got the name or contact info as to who he was admittedly messaging much more than what typical friends do. He figured if those two ever met, one of them would be severely hurt since he made the decision to inform Neo of Yang and her antics. He knew it was a risky move but he figured being honest from the get go was a wise decision if this was going to work out. He expected her to be upset, what he didn't expect was her messaging back that she was going to "choke a bitch."

As he explained to Neo, after finally calming her down, Fenix's feelings for Yang were that of a good friend. Nothing more, nothing less. He wasn't oblivious like his other blonde best friend; he could tell she had romantic feelings for him. The first embarrassing instance where Yang pulled him into a big bear hug in the middle of the cafeteria during a busy lunch period made that painfully obvious. Now that doesn't sound too bad, but in this case he nearly died from suffocation since she purposely pushed his head in between her boobs. Only by the combined strength of Ruby and Weiss was Fenix finally freed from his cushiony prison and allowed to breathe the sweet sweet oxygen his lungs had been starved of. He was irritated by how she very obviously meant to put his head there for everybody in the lunch room to see. It was also emasculating to him how she was able to pretty much man handle him to do what she wanted since she caught him off guard. With a healthy mixture of embarrassment and irritation, he dragged her away amidst the entire dining hall pointing and laughing at them. Once he got her alone he started berating her with such intensity he was sure Weiss would have been proud. He thought he made it plain as day that he wasn't interested in her that way and that she needed to stop. Apparently, Yang took it that she needed to step up her game in order to get his affection. How she came to that conclusion Fenix still didn't understand but he had just accepted it at this point. He honestly thought this situation put him and Ren in the same boat in a manner of speaking.

Thinking of all this and the muffled slew of curses coming from the blonde brawler on the other side of the wall, Fenix just rolled his eyes. He motioned for the other occupants of the room to sit on the far side of the room away from the wall they shared with team RWBY. After they had all set down, Fenix stood in front of them and began.

"Ok I suppose I just need to start from the beginning…" Fenix began to tell his story. Of course he started with a shortened version of the attack on his village when he was six years old. He informed them his parents and sister had died during the attack but he skipped over many details so they could move onto the issue he thought was most important at the moment. Feeling it wasn't important he skipped over the details of how he was saved by that team of Hunters and what happened immediately after. He explained how the child services program moved him around at first until they settled him in an orphanage in a quiet mountain town called Arcadia. It was located in the southern end of Vale and that was where he met Jaune and the Arc family. Skipping ahead to the good stuff and omitting several hilarious stories of Jaune and his sister's, Fenix paused. He had only spoken to his more recent past with two people so this was a little more difficult than he cared to admit.

"Five years ago, one year before I left Arcadia, I was in a battle on the outskirts of the village. Things got bad really fast and before I realized it I was surrounded by Grimm. I was about to get overwhelmed when somebody stepped in and rescued me. She was a full-fledged huntress and a scary one at that. After rescuing me she admitted she had been watching me fight until she absolutely had to intervene." He was about to go on until he saw the confused looks on Ruby and Jaune's faces.

"It was her way of testing me to see how good I was." He explained to them. Jaune lit up in realization while Ruby just looked more serious. Like it bothered her that somebody would almost let somebody die just to see how good of a fighter they were.

"Anyways, after a bit of talking she gave me an offer. She would take me under her wing to become her apprentice if I swore allegiance to her and her group. Seeing as how up to that point I had pretty much trained myself, I was intrigued by learning from somebody who actually knew what they were doing. I accepted her offer and swore allegiance to her, but then she introduced me to the group she wanted me to follow along with her. It wasn't like your typical social club or religious group or anything like that. It was an actual real life secret society. Now before I go any further I need all of your to swear that you will not breathe a word of this to anyone else. I have seen firsthand what they do to people who are found to be spreading their existence around. I'm being dead serious, you cannot tell anyone you know anything about them. Got it?" His friends now were all thoroughly engaged in his story and on the edge of their seats with anticipation. They all nodded their heads enthusiastically and he took it as their word. He sighed because he knew this is where the issues were going to arise.

"Have you guys ever heard of… Sanctorum de tenebris?" He was met with blank stares from four and Alexis looking like she was trying to recall where she had heard that before.

"You might know them as Saints of the Shadows." Yup, that did it. Liam and Beau's eyes shot wide open in fear. Jaune and Ruby still had the blank looks on their faces and Alexis still looked like she was having trouble remembering something. For a few moments the only noise in the room was the rock and roll blaring from Fenix's scroll on the other side of the room.

"You mean to tell me…" Liam paused as he stood up menacingly. Looking like he was ready to crush Fenix at a moment's notice. "…That you were willingly part of a group that wishes to exterminate all faunus from the face of Remnant?" He voice was quiet but the sharpness in it conveyed the threat clearly to Fenix. At this news Jaune, Ruby, and Alexis all looked at Fenix in shock while Beau just crossed his arms waiting for his leader's answer.

"Whoa whoa whoa." Fenix stepped up as if to challenge Liam. "First of all, former member here. I got out. Second, that's a bunch of crap that they are like that. Some of our best members were faunus. They are not in some war to cleanse the world of all faunus." Liam stared back at Fenix searching for some sign of a lie. After a bit he realized his leader was being honest with him so he broke eye contact in surrender.

"I believe you." Beau spoke up as Liam sat back down. Fenix nodded in thanks to him and received one back from his other faunus teammate.

"Me too." Jaune joined in. "You're my oldest friend Fenix. I know you are not a racist and there is no way in hell you would join something that is." Fenix smiled to Jaune for being the voice of reason for once. Ruby flashed him a smile that showed she agreed with Jaune's point. Fenix turned to see Alexis still deep in thought.

"Al gal? You ok?" His nickname for her seemed to snap her back to reality as she jumped and looked at him.

"Huh? Oh yes I'm ok. It's just… I've heard those names before somewhere, but I just can't place where or when. Please continue." She motioned with her hand for him to continue his story. He was more than happy to oblige that request so he could move on from this subject.

"Before I do, Liam, how did you hear that about the Saints?" Fenix was honestly a bit surprised that rumors had spread about a supposed secret society out for faunus blood.

"It's more like a scary story that faunus kids hear around the camp fire. You guys have stories about rabid faunus out for blood, we have stories about the Saints coming to get us." Beau stated before Liam had the chance to speak.

"In Menagerie it is more like lore. Tales of the human devils who want nothing more than to see our kind's existence wiped clean from this world. There are a lot of different versions but the Saints of the Shadows are always the source of the evil in them." Fenix was actually curious about this now. He knew the Saints had been around for a long time. They were raised from the ashes of the first collapse of civilization long ago. Something that incidentally also brought the emergence of the faunus race. The more he thought about it the more there seemed to be something to these stories of his old associates. He decided to do some digging on it later and pushed on to finish his story.

"Well, in short I took her up on her offer and joined. For the last year I was in Arcadia, I trained under her in secret before they called me to formally join the Order. Once I did, I stayed with my master and joined her division."

"Wait. Division?" Ruby interrupted.

"Yeah the Saints are just a part of the Order. In reality, there are multiple factions that serve different purposes." Everybody looked shocked at his admittance that there was way more than just his group.

"So you're telling me, there is a huge underground group, that is extremely organized, and a few of us have only heard whispers of one part of it?" Ruby asked in wonder. Fenix could see the rest of them seemed a little unnerved by this but Ruby looked fascinated.

"Yes." Fenix simply stated hoping they wouldn't dive too far into this subject.

"So cool!" Ruby squealed. Fenix chuckled at her childlike behavior before Jaune spoke up again.

"So what was your 'divisions' job?" Fenix shot an annoyed look to Jaune. Leave it to his sometimes dimwitted best friend to find a topic he really didn't want to talk about and bring it up.

"Well, we were the ones who handled the covert operations. The Hunter's Guild would consider them as cloak and dagger missions. Get in, complete the objective, get out. Unseen, unheard, and no evidence that you were ever there." These specific "cloak and dagger" missions were among the rare types of missions that Hunters would ever be sent out on. If lucky, a full team of Hunters would see maybe half a dozen of these missions in their career. Fenix didn't always want to admit it but he was damn good at these types of missions as well. His master had trained him well on most of the aspects that a spy would need. That type of life/combat style just wasn't for him though. He always preferred to work alongside others as part of a team, not as a lone wolf.

Sadly he had come to the realization earlier in the week that he and his team may be used by Beacon for just those specific types of missions. They were perfect for eliminating non Grimm threats. A healer, a paralyzer, a neutralizer, and a pyrokinetic. Handling human or faunus criminals would be their specialty. Fenix's experience in this field couldn't hurt the chances that the Headmaster would use them that way either. That and his little demonstration of a strategy to essentially assassinate somebody with little effort in class earlier today pretty much guaranteed his hypothesis in his mind.

He just prayed that Ozpin and the other higher ups wouldn't abuse their abilities and turn them into assassins. The Order had tried that early on during his tenure there but he staunchly refused to kill. It kind of forced their hand seeing as how an assassin who won't strike first is kind of useless. Only a few instances where it was necessary had he actually taken a life in their name.

"So you were like a hitman or something?" Alexis broke his reminiscing to bring him back into the conversation.

"No, nothing like that Al-gal. I have been trained in everything someone like that would need to know but I don't kill unless it is strictly necessary." Fenix chuckled as he remembered he had already had this talk this week with Neo.

"What exactly do you mean by 'strictly necessary?'" Liam, always the cynical one, asked.

"Well let me put it this way. I wouldn't kill somebody just for wanting to kill me. I'd capture them and turn them over to the authorities. I would, say, incinerate a bandit who was holding a gun to the back of a seven year old girl's head. He was going to publically execute the Mayor's daughter to prove he was in charge. Is that good enough for you Liam?" Fenix couldn't hide the anger and irritation in his voice that was directed at his partner. Liam visibly deflated and shrunk in on himself. Before anybody could further question him about this new (and rather touchy) subject, he decided it was time to wrap up this conversation.

"Anyways, we have gotten off track. After I spent a total of three years in The Order, something happened. I promise I will explain it all in two weeks when its family weekend. I think it would just be easier to explain it once with everybody. That includes explaining it to your family as well, Jaune." Jaune paled at the reminder that his entire family was going to be there for the weekend. Fenix was inwardly laughing a very evil sounding laugh.

"Long story short, it caused The Order to expel me. They would have done worse if my Master wouldn't have come to help. Once I got out, Atlas found out my dust weaving abilities. I'm not so good with clothes, but I'm really good with implementing special types of dust into weapons. They hired me and I stayed there working for the Atlesian Military. They kept me living there a secret though. Not completely sure why. General Ironwood never was one to give up information easily. A few weeks ago I was accepted here and well the rest is history." With his story now finished the group sat there in silence as they contemplated everything he had just told them.

"So, you're an orphan, who was trained by an underground organization to become basically a super soldier, who also worked for the most advanced military on the face of Remnant, who is now here training to become a Huntsman?" Ruby summarized.

"To put it simply, yes." Fenix smirked.

"Wow. Seems like you have had quite the exciting life Fenix." Alexis gushed towards the fire wielder seeming almost a tad jealous.

"I guess you could say that, although I like to think the most exciting years are ahead of us." Fenix smiled warmly as he spoke. To everyone else it seemed like he was just lightening the mood. Jaune knew better though. There was some hidden meaning behind what his friend had just said. However, he also knew that there was no way in hell he was going to get that information out of Fenix before Fenix was ready to tell. He pushed it aside in his mind to talk to Fenix later about.

"Anyways, now that that's all over, I guess it's a good time to tell you guys I will be gone most of the day tomorrow into town. Personal business. So, how about we have a guy's night tonight?" He finished looking at his fellow males in the room as if to see what they thought about it.

"Oh no! We need to have a long talk about you boys and your cleaning habits." Alexis yelled out hoping to squash the idea of having a bunch of teenage boys in her room to further trash it.

"Al, it's the weekend. We all deserve a break and some time to relax. However, as team leader I will say we can have a team meeting tomorrow morning to discuss our dorm room. Personally I think we may need to rearrange a few things but we will let everybody have a say in whatever is brought up. Besides I'm pretty sure us three have a pretty good idea what you are going to say anyways. Agreed?" Fenix was hoping to avoid the inevitable meltdown that was already known amongst their team as OCD Alexis. Not just that she was OCD, but she was crazily obsessed with the boy's personal hygiene as well. She had already suggested to Fenix in private that the whole team needed to be on a strict diet that also included multiple vitamins and supplements that they would be required to take daily. Fenix shot it down immediately knowing at least Beau would never agree to such a thing.

"Well if you guys are going to have a guy's night we can have a girl's night in our room!" Ruby shouted excitedly as she all the sudden was clinging to Alexis. Alexis seemed to ponder over the possibility for a moment before relenting.

"Fine we can have our sleepovers tonight. Are you boys planning on having yours in our room?" She asked with an eyebrow raised. Fenix nodded and Alexis turned to start packing a few things for the sleepover. Jaune and Ruby took that as their cue to go tell their teams what the plans for the night were. The boys went to moving the beds around so they could have more room in front of the TV. As Alexis finished up and began walking out of the room she turned and coughed to get their attention.

"You three are going to clean this room spotless tomorrow. Understood?" Liam and Beau groaned as Fenix rolled his eyes. They all knew that their version of spotless was drastically unacceptable to Alexis's.

"Yes mom." Fenix said sarcastically making sure to emphasize the word mom. It didn't have the desired effect because Alexis just flashed them a smile and nodded as she turned to walk to their neighbor's room.

After a few moments Jaune and Ren came walking in with a few supplies for the night. They dropped their stuff and the entire group decided instead of going to the cafeteria for dinner they would just order pizza and eat in the room. Fenix knew if Alexis knew this she would absolutely kill them but in a way that's what spurred him to do it.

After ordering the group of five all set up their scrolls to connect to the large holo-screen in their room. They began to play one of Fenix's personal favorite video games involving multiple characters all playing a free for all brawl type match. After an hour of playing the knock on their door signaled the pizza had arrived. It was good timing since Liam was raging so hard that he was threatening to pummel Jaune for knocking him out of the game.

After eating on the greasy goodness that is pepperoni pizza, Fenix washed his hands and pulled a guitar case out from his closet. Jaune looked up and smiled.

"We really going to play now?" Was all he asked. Fenix nodded in response and Jaune got up to walk to his room. He quickly came back holding a guitar case of his own. As they began to strum a few cords to warm up, Fenix noticed Ren fiddling with an alarm clock that was sitting on Alexis's desk. He had his hand around the back and was aiming it so that it was focusing on the two guitarists. Jaune had his back turned so he couldn't see what his teammate was up to. Fenix just waited until Ren looked up to make eye contact. When they did Ren gave a deer in the headlights look like he had just been caught doing something illegal. Fenix just sighed and nodded to signal it was ok. He saw Ren move to flick a switch on the back of the clock and then give a thumb up to the side to signal it was recording.

"Hey Jaune, how about you sit over here next to me?" His blonde friend looked confused for a moment before shrugging it off and moving so he was facing the hidden camera alongside Fenix.

"So, which one are we going to do?" Jaune asked as he settled his guitar back on his lap.

"How about 'If It Means a Lot to You?' Ya know, that one Juliet composed for that group?" Jaune nodded to show he liked Fenix's choice.

One of the many things that had been a prominent addition in his life since knowing the Arc family was that he had picked up how to play guitar from the second eldest sister Juliet. She was incredibly gifted in composing and performing music. She was already a big star in the music industry but what was most impressive was that she actually wrote her own songs. Very few people did that these days usually relying on some outside source to write the songs and somebody completely different would perform it.

Fenix and Jaune looked at each other as Jaune started bobbing his head to the rhythm they would be playing the song at. Jaune usually took charge of the musical aspects of their lives since he had much more experience in that field than Fenix. This particular time the pace seemed a bit quicker than usual but Fenix mentally adjusted the song in his head to match the quicker tempo. In unison they began playing the song.

 **(The song "If It Means a Lot to You" by A Day to Remember at more of the nightcore version speed of the song but with two male singers. No real special meaning behind this selection, I just really really like this song.)**

As they played the song they alternated perfectly with who sung which verse while they both sung the chorus. Only until the very end did they start alternating parts on the chorus. When they finished, the other three just looked on in admiration in their leader's musical abilities. It was obvious to them that Jaune was by far the more talented but Fenix wasn't a slouch.

After a few seconds of silence in the room they heard the unmistakable sound of applause from the room next door. Fenix, already figuring out the purpose of the camera, knew the girls were watching a live feed into their performance thanks to Ren and the nanny cam. Jaune just assumed they had listened through the wall. He sat his guitar down and faced the joining wall and bowed in appreciation of their ovation. While Jaune couldn't see Fenix's face, Fenix looked right at the camera and winked. After a slight delay he heard a muffled 'meep' from team RWBY's room. After Jaune sat back down he pulled the guitar back in his lap to start lightly playing a few verses of a song that Fenix didn't recognize.

"What's that?" He asked.

"Oh, it's uh, it's a song that sis wrote about you when you left." Jaune replied sheepishly.

"Really? That's nice. What's it called?" Fenix was actually happy the sisters Arc missed him. Life was much more calm without them around but he still missed how they made him feel like family every time he came over.

"Red." Jaune stated simply. Fenix couldn't help but notice how Ren's eyes shot open in shock.

"Really? Jules picked my old color as the title for a song? Seems rather basic." Fenix couldn't help but feel a little honored that Juliet would do that.

"Yeah I forgot to ask. What caused you to change to orange and blue?" Jaune stopped playing and looked at Fenix seriously. The fire wielder could feel the eyes of everyone in the room (and next) on him.

"Remember how I said all questions would be answered in two weeks?" Jaune just groaned at another dodged question by his best friend.

"It will be answered then?" Jaune asked already knowing the answer as he started playing again.

"It will. Any questions that you guys have after that weekend I will happily answer. Just feel like you all will understand a bit more clear if you see for your own eyes." Ren squinted at Fenix with his pink irises barely showing with how intense his stare was.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean you will have to wait for two weeks to get your answer. So Ren, have you heard of this 'Red' song?" Fenix once again deflected the question to turn it right back on someone else. Ren sat straight up to act as stoic as possible.

"I may have." He answered simply trying to convey as little emotion as possible. Fenix, being trained in interrogation, could see through it though. He was feeling nervous the guys in the room would try and embarrass him for knowing of this song.

"Secret Juliet fan?" Fenix asked bluntly to go past the probing stages of seeing if his suspicions were correct.

"You might say that." Ren replied showing no emotion again. Fenix just nodded to him in respect at being so composed. Something crossed Fenix's mind then. If Ren was a fan, he would know the nature of this song.

"So what do you know about the song?" At this Fenix couldn't help but feel slightly on edge how Ren grinned at looked at Jaune.

"It is rather… romantic… in nature." All the sudden Jaune stopped playing mid strum.

'Ah crap' Fenix thought to himself.

"It is?!" Jaune cried out. Ren just looked at his leader with the biggest 'are you shitting me?' stare he has ever seen.

"'Loving him is red'? That didn't clue you in at all Jaune?" Fenix set his guitar down in its case. A precautionary measure in case Jaune decided to lung at him. The blonde knight slowly turned his head to glare at Fenix.

"HOW MANY OF MY SISTERS DID YOU CORRUPT?!" He yelled directly into Fenix's face.

"I'm not answering that." Fenix said as he got his hands up in a defensive position.

"WHY THE HELL NOT?!" Jaune all but threw his guitar on the bed as he prepared to attack.

"Because there is no right answer. No matter what I would say you would still try to hit me." Jaune seemed to pause to think about how true Fenix's words were. After a few moments of silence, Jaune suddenly tensed up and fell sideways on the bed limp as a cooked noodle. Fenix looked back up from Jaune to see Ren had snuck behind his leader. Fenix quirked an eyebrow to wordlessly ask what he did.

"Knowing how to combine aura and pressure points is a useful technique. Wouldn't you agree Fenix?" Ren snarkly commented.

"I am inclined to agree with you Ren. Now, before we get back to gaming, let's set our alarm clock. Wouldn't want to wake up too late tomorrow now would we?" Fenix smiled as his secret message was received and Ren turned the hidden camera off on the false clock. They joined Liam and Beau who had been playing since Fenix and Jaune's song.

"Hey Ren?" Fenix asked as Ren perked up but didn't take his eyes off the screen at the sound of his name.

"How long is he going to be out like that?" Fenix asked honestly a little concerned about his friend's wellbeing in that state.

"Just a few minutes. I didn't use that much aura on him." Ren smirked in reply. True to his word, a few minutes later Jaune gasped and jerked upright. After a looking around to get his bearings he locked in on the backs of Fenix and Ren with a scowl. He then jumped into the game and set it to a team match with Jaune, Liam, and Beau versus Fenix and Ren. As he was setting it up, they could all hear him mumbling something about "the traitor must die."

They played later into the night finally everybody was ready to call it a night. As they all got to their spots for the night, Fenix played an old comedy on the holo-screen for them to fall asleep to. It didn't take too long for everybody but Fenix to fall asleep. Before he too went to bed, he pulled out his scroll and messaged Neo.

 **Fenix: Hey cutie! Last chance to back out before tomorrow.**

He didn't have to wait long until for a response

 **Sweet Thing (A.K.A. Neo): You should be the one trying to back out here. Fair warning, once I get ahold of you I'm not letting go. ;-)**

 **Fenix: Thanks for the warning but I think I can handle it. I'll be in town tomorrow around lunchtime. I'll message you when I get there. Sweet dreams sweet thing.**

 **Sweet Thing: Oh I'm sure you think you can. We'll see though ;-). Goodnight hot stuff.**

With a smile Fenix closed up his scroll and turned the holo-screen off. He was excited for tomorrow with a full afternoon of nothing but spending time with a certain ice cream colored girl who had enraptured his life more than he thought possible.

 **(A/N): So I hope that helped give you guys some more insight into Fenix. Many people have said that he is too "white knight" but that is how he supposed to be in this story. He and Jaune are extremely alike (pretty much brothers if you will) in the sense that they will do the right thing for the right reasons. Now the next chapter is going to be the date with Neo and you are going to get more back-story for both characters. I'm going to keep hinting at the big "detail" that he keeps alluding to wanting to reveal at the upcoming family weekend. Sorry to disappoint but you are not going to get anything really solid until that chapter. Trust me when I say I think you are going to like it.**

 **As always, please review/follow/favorite if you feel like you enjoyed this. So far volume four of RWBY is actually playing into the direction I want to take this story. Its far down the road but I hope you stick with me to see the twists and turns this story is expected to take.**


	12. Chapter 12

**(A/N): It's been too long. I'll save my reasoning for the end of this chapter. For now let's just get straight into the story.**

Chapter 12: The Ship Sets Sail

The next morning started pretty average for a Saturday in Fenix's eyes. He slept in, went for a morning run (which he encountered Nora and Pyrrha doing the same), and then did a quick meditation. Something he had discovered early on from a Hunter after defending his village from a Grimm attack was that meditation could help with controlling large aura reserves. So now it had become a part of his morning ritual.

After he had completed the first half of his routine he started heading back to his room to wake the rest of the guys and start getting ready. As he got to his hall he turned the corner just in time to see Alexis opening the door to their room with Yang and Blake behind her. Apparently those two couldn't resist the oncoming fireworks that was raging Alexis. As soon as Alexis disappeared into the room he heard her scream.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO MY ROOM?!" The sounds of the other guys being violently awoken by Alexis's screams could be heard from within the room. Fenix knew they were going to talk today about them apparently not meeting her cleanliness standards but now it just sounded like it was going to be a scolding.

"Fuck that." Fenix said as he turned back around to forgo his shower and changing of clothes to just skip right to breakfast. Hoping he could delay the onslaught of Al gal as long as possible.

That was his plan, at least, until he felt something tighten around him. He couldn't take another step since his ankles and legs where held tightly together. He would have moved to untie his lower half if his arms and shoulders weren't as equally bound. He looked down to see himself tied up in what he would have considered something similar to a straight jacket. He turned his head to see the source of the very familiar black ribbon coming from Blake's weapon.

He looked up to see Blake smirking and Yang flashing a toothy grin.

"Blake, I thought we were friends." Fenix said with a hint of pleading in his voice.

"We are. It's just this is too good to pass up." Blake replied as she slowly started pulling on the ribbon, thus dragging Fenix towards the room where his female teammate would surely have a few choice words for him.

"Think I can borrow that sometime?" Yang asked Blake much to Fenix's horror. He had an idea what she might be planning.

"Why? Did this give you an idea?" Blake asked Yang jokingly as she continued to reel Fenix in.

"Something like that." Yang purred way too seductively for Fenix's comfort.

"Blake…" Fenix said threateningly as he glanced up to her bow. Blake got the message and rolled her eyes at the fire wielder.

"I wasn't going to let her. No need to resort to that." Blake replied much to Fenix's relief and Yang's confusion/disappointment. Now Fenix was standing in front of the girls as Blake turned him so he was facing into his room.

"Have fun." With that she shoved him hard and started retracting her ribbon. The result caused Fenix to start spinning until the ribbon had completely freed him. When he came completely free, he fell over onto his butt. He got his bearings back and then made the biggest mistake of the day.

He looked up.

Right into the furious eyes of Alexis.

"Aw hell." Fenix muttered as he stood up.

"Do you mind explaining THIS?!" She shrieked as she waved her hand to show off the room.

Sure it wasn't its usual spotless self what with a few items out of place along with blankets and pillows strewn across the room. It looked like the other four still hadn't woken up before Alexis ambushed them. That being said, the room was by no means what any normal (or sane) person would consider a mess. Actually all things considered, Fenix thought it looked pretty good given the circumstances. He had seen the rooms of the Arc siblings. A shiver made its way up his spine as he remembered the horror of what Jessica and Jillian's room looked like on a normal day.

Back to the matter at hand, Fenix glanced about the room and then looked back at Alexis. He was momentarily prepared to begin his three point argument on why she was overreacting, until he noticed the look in her eyes. The fierce stare she was giving him was more than enough to make him reconsider. He just sighed in defeat and looked to Jaune and Ren.

"You guys mind if we have a little team meeting?" Both male members of team JNPR quickly gathered their things and made their way out the door. As they left Fenix went over to shut the door but Yang tried to hold it open. A brief struggle commenced to see who could force the door to their desired position. Once they reached a stalemate Fenix looked up to see Yang offering a challenging smirk towards him. Fenix dug into his bag of tricks and pulled out an old but effective technique. He took one hand off the door and brushed a stray strand of hair back behind her ear. As he did so he made sure to run his trigger finger along her cheek and jawbone the entire way. The light touch had its desired effect as her look of determination quickly changed to one akin of a deer in the headlights. He quickly retracted his hand and grinned as he pushed the door completely shut with his hand that had remained on the door. The sound of the locking mechanism latching and a rather unpleased blonde on the other side of the door signaled that they were indeed safe for the time being.

Fenix turned around to be met with the smug looks from his two remaining male companions.

"No." He stated simply as he went to sit on his bed.

"Alright first things first boys, I thought you said that you weren't going to get the room messy." Alexis sounded like a mother scolding her three children.

"Al gal, we didn't do anything too bad to destroy the room. Just let us straighten it up..." Fenix begun until Alexis interrupted him.

"And vacuum." She added.

"And vacuum…" He agreed.

"And dust." She added further.

"And…dust?" Fenix asked slightly confused.

"And mop." She added furthermore.

"IT'S A CARPETED FLOOR!" Fenix yelled back at her.

"Not in the bathroom." She stated simply as Fenix rubbed his temples in frustration.

"Look, Al gal, I think you have too high of expectations for us." Beau chimed in.

"Agreed. My home never looked this nice even when the Cheiftan came to visit." Liam spoke up. Seeing the three boys were in agreement against her she finally relented.

"Fine. On one condition, we need to set up a cleaning schedule." Fenix was surprised that that was all her demands were. 'Maybe the girls and her had a talk last night' he secretly hoped.

"Deal." Fenix accepted the terms without hesitation, knowing full well if any of them didn't do a good enough job Alexis would come up behind them to complete it so it met her standards.

"Also, I have a proposition for you guys." She caught all their attentions with that. They were all three secretly praying that it wasn't more stipulations on the cleaning or her pushing that they get on a regulated diet again. Seriously how many times did they need to shoot down that idea before she'd let it go?

"Last night in team RWBY's room I noticed they had made their own bunk beds. It looked dangerous how they put them together but it did allow them to have more room to move about. Would you guys be interested in moving to bunk beds?" Fenix admitted a little more space in the room wouldn't hurt.

"I get top bunk!" Liam shouted excitedly. All three members of his team slowly turned their heads to look at him in bewilderment.

"Nuh uh." Was all Alexis could muster.

"Nope." Beau deadpanned.

"Dibs on the other top!" Fenix hurriedly exclaimed. The look of shock on Alexis and Beau's faces was priceless. Matched with the shit eating grin coming from his partner it just made a Kodak moment.

"A seven foot bear faunus and a boy who can set the place on fire at any given moment are the two who get the top bunks? Nuh uh!" Alexis cried out indignantly.

"Yup! Sucks to be you two!" Fenix replied cheekily as he started getting his shower supplies together.

"Wait! How are we going to make something that can hold up Liam?" Alexis asked. Fenix froze as he carefully digested what she had just said.

"What do you mean make?" He asked slightly confused.

"I mean we have to set up these bunk beds ourselves." Alexis replied.

"What in the world of Remnant are you talking about? We don't have to set anything up. We can requisition some from the storage center here and they will trade out our single beds for bunk beds." Alexis blinked in mild shock at Fenix's words.

"What?" She asked as Fenix rummaged through his drawer before holding up a pamphlet each student got in their 'welcome to Beacon' package.

"In here it states that if you wish to trade out any of your furnishings for something different you just need to fill out a requisition form and the staff here will supply. As long as it is on the list of provided amenities which bunk beds are on said list." Fenix said as he handed the packet to Alexis to look over. She glanced over the pointed out section quickly before grinning evilly and looking up to the rest of the boys.

"Don't tell team RWBY about this." The three boys looked at her slightly confused.

"I'll bite. Why?" Beau asked the million lien question.

"Let's just say team RWBY's bunk beds are not exactly designed to be bunk beds." Soon everybody got the message as they all started laughing.

"I've got to see this sometime." Fenix chuckled as he finally walked into the bathroom to take a much needed shower. After he showered and got dressed in what he would consider date appropriate clothes, he started strapping his weapons on. His new outfit was his cobalt blue dress shirt with the top two buttons undone. He had his shirt tucked into his black jeans along with a black belt and comfortable black dress shoes.

"I thought you were going into town for the day. Why are you gearing up?" Liam asked his partner.

"Simple, a Hunter should never go anywhere unarmed." Fenix replied as he finished securing his sheathes to their normal position on his back.

"Speaking of armed Hunters, I would like to formally offer you guys my services. Since you are my teammates I want to offer this to you guys before anyone else. As I told you before I'm a class five weapons smith and am really good at utilizing dust in weapons. All of you have your own weapons but they're, well I'll be honest, they're rather basic." Liam looked slightly offended while the other two seemed interested in where Fenix was going with this. To stop Liam from going on a tantrum, Fenix spoke up again quickly after a brief pause.

"I'm not saying they aren't efficient, I'm just saying an upgrade wouldn't hurt to further your chances of survival. If you guys would trust me I would like to make some modifications to all of your weapons. . I'll also take any special requests each of you may have in regards to your weapons. Beau, I'd like to upgrade your assault rifle and revolver both if that's ok?" Beau seemed to think about it for a moment before speaking.

"I'd like to keep my pistol the way it is. Been in my family for generations and I'd hate to be the one to change that. And, don't change the body of my rifle. I've gotten used to it." Fenix inwardly grimaced. That was some rather steep stipulations to follow and it basically made his options extremely limited. Then he remembered something and an idea popped into his head.

"Beau you still wear that glove in combat right?" Beau nodded in confirmation.

"Yup." He answered simply.

"Perfect. I have my idea for you know. Now for you Liam, any problems with me giving you something that will make your sword more *cough cough* explosive?" Fenix knew the answer before he asked the question, but that didn't make the maniacal grin that was spread across Liam's face any less creepy. He swore Liam was a not so secret sadist.

"That would do nicely Fenix. I would be honored." Liam bowed his head in respect towards Fenix to which he reciprocated with a similar bow.

"And Alexis, what I have in mind for your weapons would require a lot of changes. Any requests from you?"

"Actually yes, I like how my weapons only stay to the exterior side of my forearms, I would like them to stay like that and not be turned into full fledged gauntlets like Yang's. I would also like to retain their current functions as well as add a few. I will leave the additions to you." Fenix nodded. Nothing he wasn't expecting from her and, to be honest, nothing he hadn't already planned on doing.

"As a little bonus I can have them ready by family weekend so you can showcase your new tricks to your parents. Maybe team RWBY or JNPR will act as our guinea pigs in a team battle. What do you think?"

"I think they would agree to that." Alexis spoke as the group started to break up the conversation so they could spend the rest of their Saturday doing their own thing. Fenix walked over to his dresser and opened it to reveal a decent sized rectangular box. After a bit of internal struggle he decided to put it on. Coco had no problem wearing hers to show she was once a part of the Order so he didn't see a reason to be paranoid anymore. If she hadn't had any issues and she had been here a year he figured he should be safe from accidently running into any active members. After putting it on he said his goodbyes to his teammates and headed out the door.

He made it to the courtyard and began walking towards the airship docks. As he passed the large statue located in the middle of the courtyard, he noticed Ruby, Jaune, Pyrrha, and Weiss walking his way.

"Morning ladies." He waved politely once they noticed him.

"Oh ha ha." Jaune sarcastically laughed as the two redheads giggled while Weiss just barely smirked.

"Morning Fenix! Ooooooo you look nice. Going somewhere?" Ruby asked excitedly.

"Yes. I'm headed into Vale." He replied to the group.

"Would you like us to accompany you Fenix? It seems a shame to spend your weekend in Vale alone." Pyrrha offered politely. Fenix could catch how she glanced at the oblivious blonde knight next to her. The subtle hope that Jaune would join her and basically give her (in her eyes) a date scenario appeared to elate her. Sadly he was going to have to shoot down that idea so to keep his and Neo's privacy.

"I appreciate the offer but I'd like some time to myself today if you don't mind." Fenix replied with a nod of appreciation towards Pyrrha. A half lie but Neo was very adamant that she wanted to remain a secret for now.

"Speaking of which, Ruby you think you could do me a big favor? Maybe you too Weiss?" He turned towards the little reaper and her partner.

"What cha need?" Ruby asked with her typical beaming smile. She was always happy to help out her friends. Weiss didn't seem near as enthused, rather more curious what he could want from them.

"Think you could keep Yang off my tail for the day?" He chuckled as the two girls in question rolled their eyes.

"I'll do my best, but you know how she is." Ruby sighed.

"Oh trust me. I do. Weiss I'm counting on you to keep Yang off of me and Ruby in line while I'm gone. It's a tough task. Do you think you are up to it?" He teased the heiress. She just stuck her nose up and turned her head to the side.

"Of course. A Schnee never backs down from a challenge." She spoke a little harshly but that was soon broken by Ruby's whining at Weiss. With a wave he said his farewells and continued walking towards the docks.

"I feel bad." Ruby spoke up after the group of four had gotten out of earshot from Fenix.

"What ever for?" Weiss asked.

"I just, don't like him being all by himself. He seems lonely sometimes." Ruby mused to which Jaune just softly laughed at her. He caught her irritated glare and decided to explain it to her. Her innocence was refreshing to have around their group but it also made some things difficult for her to understand.

"Firstly, in all seriousness, Fenix has always been a little bit of a loner." The girls all shot disbelieving looks towards Jaune. He started waving his hands in front of him in a bit of a defensive move.

"I mean he is a really good guy and very easy to talk to. But… you have to realize because of his abilities he has done a lot of things that no one our age should have had to do. He has seen and survived a lot of horrors. So, it's not unlike him to go have some time to himself to reflect on things." At his solemn words the group conversation shifted into uncomfortable silence, until Jaune spoke up again.

"Second, and on a lighter note, he isn't going to be alone for long." He winked as the girls looked back up to meet him smiling.

"Come on, did you see how he is dressed?" The girls turned back around to see Fenix in the distance in his date attire boarding a bullhead. Weiss and Pyrrha seemed to get it but Ruby still seemed confused.

"He isn't going to Vale dressed like that to just walk around. He is going to meet somebody. By the looks of his outfit, I'd venture a girl." Jaune winked to Ruby who blushed a little at the gesture.

"What if its one of your sisters?" Ruby asked teasingly once she had recovered. Jaune froze mid step and a frown made its way across his face.

"Oh he better not. If he does I'll start helping Yang with her little quest." The group started laughing at that as they continued towards their dorm rooms to contain the blonde brawler.

After a short bullhead ride, Fenix stepped out into city of Vale. He looked around not seeing his pink and brown haired cutie. He started making his way towards the end of the crowd until he noticed her. She was walking towards him down one of the side streets. Swinging her parasol with each step she took.

He didn't know what it was, but something was different. It wasn't her outfit, since she had opted to wear her typical Neapolitan themed outfit and not her disguise for some reason today. Maybe it was her make up? He honestly wished he could figure out whatever it was because she just looked so damn good. He kept admiring the sight of her walking towards him as he took notice of her looks, her outfit, and her jewelry. That was it! She wasn't wearing any jewelry last time! The piece that caught his eye was a rather cute looking neckl-

Wait.

No fucking way.

Of course it had to be THAT necklace. The same one that signified a female member of the Order. The exact same one he had seen every day on his master all those years ago and recently on Coco.

He was panicking. He needed to get her alone to talk about this now. He couldn't exactly strike up a conversation about this out in the open. Especially in a crowded area like what they were currently in. As she was about to reach him he got a strange feeling. His old sense of somebody was tailing him started acting up. He hadn't felt that one in awhile but when he did feel it, it was seldom wrong. That changed his objectives momentarily.

As Neo reached him and leaned in for a kiss he quickly dodged the kiss and grabbed her by the arm. Her shock was apparent enough as he wrapped his arm around hers and started leading her away from the crowded dock. He had to almost drag her with how fast he was moving. He wasn't trying to be forceful with her so he leaned in to ease her hesitant reaction to his actions.

"We are being followed." At that she seemed to perk up. She gave him a quick nod and pointed him in the direction of a side alley. They turned down it as Fenix could hear the unmistakable sound of boots approaching the alley from the street they had just turned off of. Whoever it was was still following them. Neo then pulled him down another side alley to help shake whoever was on their trail. Neo kept leading him down alley after alley, navigating the concrete maze with precision that could only be from experience. After over half a dozen turns they arrived at another alleyway but this time Neo pulled him into an alcove off to the side of the alley and placed the two of them behind a large air conditioning unit. It was big enough to hide the two of them but the space only allowed for them to stand single file. This ended up with Fenix pushing Neo up against the wall facing her while he pushed himself up against her to better hide himself. He turned to watch the alleyway to catch a glimpse of their pursuer. After a minute of hiding the footsteps got really loud and he could tell it was who had been tailing them. A certain blonde mane of hair came into view and paused to survey the area. Fenix saw the girl start to turn their way to look down the alcove and Fenix ducked back into their cover. When he did so he didn't notice how he basically pinned Neo up against the wall. The girl was thankful at that moment she was a mute because if not, the moan she was silently exhaling would surely have given them away.

Fenix didn't notice though. He was busy peeking out of their hiding spot to catch a glimpse of lilac eyes turning crimson in frustration as she turned and stomped away. He finally exhaled the air he had unknowingly been holding.

"God dammit Yang." He muttered and then turned to notice Neo raising an eyebrow at him in an unspoken question.

"Remember that girl I told you who is making the moves on me at Beacon?" He asked as he backed up a half-step to allow the woman a little breathing room. She nodded for him to continue.

"Well that was her." At this Neo's eyes shot open in surprise for a split second. The look that came across her face right after that though scared the ever loving crap out of Fenix.

He had seen some things. Some very unsightly things that he wished would never haunt his mind ever again. Not many of them compared to the look of pure evil that came from the tiny ice cream colored girl in front of him. It was the most sadistic grin he had ever seen in his life. It horrified him and yet, he found himself strangely attracted to this.

'Got me a bad girl here. Me likey. Wait wait (inwardly slapping himself) bad Fenix. Remember the main reason you wanted to get her away from those crowds before you realized Yang was snooping on you.' He thought to himself. Just as he finished his inner monologue, Neo moved to push past him and go confront Yang.

"Oh no you don't." Fenix replied as he went to pin her against the wall again. He noticed a flick of her wrist and he instantly reacted. Unsheathing his Veloces, he brought the blade up against her throat. He tried to do it as non-threateningly as one can when holding a sword to somebody else's neck. Attempting to show her that he was only interested in restraining her, not actually harming her.

The look of evil was not present anymore. Something much more frightening was on her adorable little face now.

A look of amusement.

That bothered Fenix for a second before she motioned down with her heterochromatic eyes. He looked down after he felt the tap of the blade from her parasol up against his inner thigh. His eyes widened in shock on actually being in this stand off before he spoke.

"Ok that's just not fair." He noted the confident smile returned as she gave a light huff of laughter.

"But while we are here we might as well talk about the elephant in the room right now." He paused to make sure she understood the severity of the situation. She clearly didn't. Hell he didn't either. They hadn't even actually talked about it yet, but he could tell this was not something either could just ignore.

"Where, the hell, did you get that?" He asked softly yet sternly as he pointed with his eyes to her necklace. She looked down to see he was indeed pointing at her jewelry and a quick look of fear flittered across her eyes as they both turned white. They quickly returned to their normal one pink one brown color as she moved her free hand. Fenix tilted his head to signal to her 'no tricks' which she rolled her eyes and held up her scroll with her other hand. She began typing something and Fenix had just enough time to amaze at how quick she was at that with one hand before she turned it to show him the message.

 **Pawn shop hotstuff. Why? Do you like it?** Fenix started chuckling as she looked at him with curiosity as to what was so funny about it.

"Yes it does look good on you, but we both know there is no way in hell you found that at a pawn shop." The look of surprise came back as she seemed confused how he had caught her lie.

"So I'll ask again." He said as he brought his free hand up to unbutton another button from his shirt.

"Where..." He began as he started fishing inside his shirt for something.

"Did…" He said as he seemed to find what he was looking for underneath the fabric.

"You get this?" He finished as he revealed the item that caused Neo's eyes to go white again from the shock. She couldn't believe it. There was no way that this boy, the one that she felt so attached to, was one of them.

The item in question was a simple looking necklace for men. A cross hanging crooked almost at a diagonal angle held up by a single black cord.

The symbol that signified a male member of the Order.

She was so confused. He seemed like such a good guy. Nice, charming even, seemed to want to do things for legitimately good reasons, and really really cute. So how could he, be one of those who had hunted her for years? She had to get away from him. She couldn't be taken back. She would never go back!

She started applying pressure to his thigh to prove she wasn't going to go without a fight. Fenix started wincing in pain as he turned so that the flat side of his blade was pressing up against her neck. It was a sign that he wasn't meaning to hurt her.

"Ahh ahh hold on. I no longer have anything to do with them and I'm not here to fight. Just had to make sure you wouldn't try to stab me without thinking first, ok?" She thought his words over for a few seconds before sighing and retracting her blade back into her parasol. Fenix sighed as well as he took his sword off her throat and returned it to its sheath.

"So, current or former member?" He asked with a slight hint of concern to his voice. Neo began typing into her scroll with both hands. As she was typing up a storm, Fenix realized how close their bodies were to each other. An embarrassed flush sprouted to life on his face and he moved to step backwards to give her some space. As soon as he attempted to though, One of Neo's hands snaked around his lower back and pulled him closer to her. She just raised an eyebrow and gave him a look as if to challenge him to try to get away from her. He didn't need any more hints than that as he allowed himself to be pulled back against her. A few awkwardly silent moments later she had finished her message and held her scroll up for him to read.

 **Yes and no. Yes that technically I am still an active member. Only because they never officially declared me released from their services. But in every other sense I am not. I ran away almost seven years ago. They came after me to drag me back to them but I ran to one of the few places they were not permitted to touch me, Haven Academy.**

"Wait. Two things. First what division? Second, are you telling me there is basically a no fly zone on Haven for the Order?" Fenix asked after he had finished reading her message. She nodded and then typed a quick answer.

 **Sanctorum de tenebris. And actually there is one over all of the huntsmen academies. It's not something they like to publicize because people like me would just run to them for safety. After some digging I found that the council has an agreement with the Headmasters of the academies to not interfere with their students.** Fenix took those words in. It was true that some members would have defected had they known that little tidbit of information. That wasn't what bothered him though, for some reason it bothered him that the council withheld secrets from its members. He had no idea why this bothered him though. It should have been expected what with them being a SECRET organization and everything. He quickly brushed those thoughts of doubt aside. He was no longer a part of them and they were no longer a part of his life. Their problems were no longer his own so he needn't dwell on them. As if on cue, a petite hand cupped his cheek and brought his attention back to Neo. He hadn't even realized he had turned away from her but now felt sheepish that she had caught his mind wandering.

 **You know it's rude to zone out and keep a lady waiting like this?** She smirked as he read the message out loud and then blushed a little bit as he realized he was still pushing her up against the wall.

"In my defense I tried to let you go but you pushed me back." Fenix quipped back at her.

 **Who said I was telling you to stop?**

After reading her insinuating message he looked back to see her leaning in towards him. He had to admit to himself that he had been eagerly waiting this moment for the past week since he last saw her orientation day. He couldn't explain it but everything about this girl just ensnared him. Her touch, her fragrance, her smile, her… just everything about her was so addicting to him. He had also noticed his thoughts were increasingly drifting towards Neo the more time he spent away from her. It had only been one week but it felt like they had been apart for entirely too long.

He couldn't take it anymore.

His feelings for her consumed him as he quickly closed the gap between them and smashed his lips onto hers. He had been daydreaming about what he would do the moment he saw her all week. All his planning and thoughts about how to be suave just flew out the window as he initiated a full make out session. And as much as he wanted to kick himself, he couldn't bring himself to care. He was in a state of pure bliss and he didn't want it to end.

Neo on the other hand was having some very conflicting feelings. On one hand, she wasn't sure how to feel about him being a supposed former member of the Order. The very organization that had been hounding her nonstop ever since she left years ago. They had been after her in a weak attempt to drag her back into their ranks ever since she defected. Her brain was screaming for her to just run and not look back. Much like she had done every other time an Order member had confronted her. In all honesty she knew that's what she should do. But, the other hand was winning. The hand that had strong emotional connections to Fenix and was somehow convinced he wasn't a pawn for the council. The hand that yearned for him to be close to her. The hand that for some reason ignored all sense of logic and just melted into the kiss.

'Fuck it' she thought to herself as she pushed back and returned the kiss. Propping her parasol up against the wall next to her, she ran her hands behind his head so one rested on his neck and the other tangled in his hair.

After a few minutes (what seemed like only a few seconds to the two love birds) Fenix broke off the kiss. A quick once over showed Neo with a look of complete euphoria. Her eyes remained closed as she leaned forward as if to chase him down to continue the kiss. At this he leaned back slightly to maintain the separation. When Neo found she didn't make contact again, she opened her eyes. She turned her head and pouted as cutely as she could when she saw the smirk on his face at avoiding any further kissing. Her pout was rewarded with a warm hand cupping her cheek as he angled her face to make eye contact with him.

"Neo, I think us getting frisky behind an air conditioning machine in a back alley may be a bit much for our second date." Fenix wasn't going to admit that that idea did actually sound to his liking at the moment. He didn't want to move too fast with this one. There was something different about her that made him want to do everything right.

She just waggled her eyebrows suggestively and grinned at his statement. She actually liked the idea, what with her being on the mischievous side and all. It sounded so adventurous and exciting to her to just go at each other in these back alleys. She had noticed her exhibitionist kink early in her teenage years and the thoughts of them resurfacing sent shivers up her spine.

Fenix, having noticed the gleam in her eyes and the not so subtle quiver, immediately regretted giving her the idea and moved quickly to get them moving on with their date before she attacked him in the best way possible.

"Come on sweet thing, let's go get some lunch and actually start our date instead of hanging out in the back alleys." He said as he backed off of her and motioned for her to follow him out of their hiding spot and back towards the main streets of Vale. She sighed somewhat disappointedly and pushed herself off of the wall. After both brushed their clothes off, Neo took his arm and led him towards Main Street to find a restaurant.

Their walk back to the crowded streets of Vale was uneventful compared to Fenix's arrival to the city. No sign of the still prowling Yang Xiao Long allowed Fenix to relax a little bit. He still kept his guard up knowing if they were spotted Yang would cause a scene. He would rather avoid that little display today.

Eventually they found a nice looking restaurant that they decided to try out. On the outside it looked like a plain restaurant, nothing too fancy or flashy. The only thing that Fenix found odd was the name, "Fat Bottom Betty's." He found the name strangely humorous and pointed it out to Neo before they went in. She too found the name odd and silently giggled at it as she walked in the front door being held by the fire wielder. Once they both were completely inside the establishment, they were both pleasantly surprised.

The place had a rather young atmosphere to it. The first and most noticeable attributes of the place was the large pizza oven shaped like a dome. It had a steady fire burning in it that appeared to be powered by wood. Next to that was a fully stocked bar which Fenix was thinking he may use a few times during his stay at Beacon. The rest of the place had a rather sporty feeling to it. Beacon's athletics logos were plastered all around the place as well as ones representing Vale's professional teams. Holo-screens were placed all around the dining area. Most were showing sports games while a few scattered screens were playing rock and roll music videos.

They were seated in a booth by the front window. They both opened the menus and Fenix gasped. Neo looked at him confused as he was looking at the menu with an amount of awe that could only be described as a child in a candy store.

"I think I'm in love…" He paused and looked at Neo as her breath hitched. She wasn't exactly sure what to make of him professing his love for her like that. She knew she had strong feelings for him but she wasn't yet convinced that it was love. Everything about this seemed to be moving so fast. She needed more time to think about this. She was broken from her mental breakdown as he finished his statement.

"…With this place." He grinned at her as she gave him a look of disbelief.

'That son of a' she didn't even finish her thought as she gave a sharp kick with her steel tipped combat heel into his shin. He winced but kept the smile on his face knowing he deserved that one. Looking back up at her, he saw a cocky smirk across her face. As if she had put him in his place. Neo then started signing to ask him why he felt he loved this place already. When she finished signing she opened her menu again to browse the selections as he answered.

"Oh well the atmosphere is amazing, and have you seen the selection of the menu? Wings, pasta, salads, pizza, steak, and most importantly, burgers." Neo just replied with a quirked eyebrow.

"Burgers are by far my favorite food." Fenix stated simply as he returned to browsing the burger section of the menu. After a few moments of looking the waitress came and took their orders. Fenix deciding on a rather thick burger with fries and a side salad. Neo chose the shrimp fettuccini with a side salad as well. Once they had their orders placed the waitress took their menus and left. Fenix took this as the time to strike up conversation.

"So Neo, I couldn't help but notice you weren't using your disguise today. Why's that?" Sure enough, she was in her typical ice cream colored outfit that matched her hair and eyes. Neo moved to sign her answer but looked around at the somewhat busy lunch crowd. Figuring it would be safer to just type it out on her scroll instead of some civilian reading her explanation why she wasn't in a disguise, she started typing. Once done she put her scroll on the table and slid it to him.

 **I can be more relaxed with my identity in Vale than at Beacon. Typical civilians here don't know who I am but I'm a bit of a figure amongst the Hunters so I try not to attract too much attention if I have to go to Beacon.**

That was a bold faced lie, and she knew it. Most people in Vale knew exactly who she was. They just knew better than to say anything because those who tried to stand up to her tended to end up dead. Nobody wanted to attract that kind of attention so they just did their best to pretend the murderous pint sized girl from hell wasn't in the same room with them. Even the local police knew not to cross her. Only a fully trained Hunter or Huntress could handle the ice cream girl in a fight and even then it was risky.

Fenix seemed to accept her lie with a nod of his head as he slid her scroll back to her. It's not like he had been around long enough to know any of these things and she would prefer it if he never knew that about her. She noticed he looked a little hesitant to speak about what was his follow up question. He glanced at her with a look as if silently seeking permission to ask. She smiled gently at him to signal she didn't mind.

"Soooo… something is kind of bugging me. About the Order. They didn't ever attempt to capture you after you graduated?" He asked somewhat skeptically. There was no way in hell that the Order just gave up and let her get away like that. As she began typing her answer he wondered to himself if Liam was starting to rub off on him. Liam never took something at face value. There was always a secret motive or hidden meaning to everything in the faunus's eyes. He was snapped out of his musing when Neo waved her scroll in his face for him to read.

 **Oh they tried all right. But remember my semblances? I'm perfect for not being detected. Plus the training I received at the academy helped to hone my fighting skills so whenever they did actually track me down I fought them off.**

"Ah that makes sense. It was just weird to me how you act like you are in hiding from the Order but you have no problem walking around the capital city with no disguise." Neo nodded but held up a finger signaling him to hold that thought as she pulled her scroll back up. Her fingers became a blur from the speed she was typing at. It was obvious after years of this being her main form of communication that she had become quite good at it. Soon she was done with typing her message as she once again slid it across the table for him to read.

 **Yes but you have to remember the Order's method of action. They always send their underlings to locate and confront the individual first. The council is too stubborn to deviate from their age old tactics. So every time they have found me, they send one of their apprentices to try and capture me first. I usually have no problem handling them and after defeating them I just relocate before the big guns can come in response.**

Fenix had to admit that she made a damn good point. The Order had too often stuck to their extremely outdated methods. Yet somehow they didn't seem to hinder the results too often. Except in situations like these, where people knew how the Order worked and how to find loopholes in their system. It was one of the topics in which he and his master often got into heated debates over. She would argue that the Order's tactics were still effective while he would argue that there were too many flaws. The fact that most of their debates just ended in his Master assigning him extra training out of frustration didn't annoy him at all. Not one single frickin bit. But he was getting himself side tracked again.

"I have to admit that is an advantageous flaw in the process that you are exploiting there." She smiled self satisfactorily to which Fenix had to admit looked adorable. He then remembered that he found many of her little looks to be adorable. Either that or terrifying. He was still baffled how something so absolutely beautiful could turn and be unnervingly frightening the next moment. She truly was an enigma.

He was saved from trying to continue the conversation after it had awkwardly faltered by their waitress returning with their food. They promptly dug in and fell into a comfortable silence as they began devouring their respective meals. A little small talk was shared between the two as they would alternate between answering and eating. Before they knew it their food was gone and Fenix had paid the bill. Neo moved to argue that she was more than capable of paying for her own food.

"No sweet thing I got this. My old master taught me that the male is supposed to pay for his date's meal. You will have your chance to pay for something later, don't worry about it." He saw this argument coming and squashed it before it could start. She raised an eyebrow to question what he meant by that.

"Well there's something I would like to do later but the place won't open for a few hours so I was going to suggest we go do something to kill some time. Would shopping interest you?" He asked somewhat nervously. He inwardly wondered to himself why asking a simple question would make his nerves on edge like that.

Neo's answer came in the form of a nod accompanied with a cute smile. As they left the restaurant she took his arm again as they started walking in the direction of the Vale shopping district. She knew it was cliché but she loved how he never failed to offer his arm for her to hold on to.

"So…uh… I know this seems like a lame question but what's your favorite color?" Fenix broke the silence first as they strolled down the sidewalk. She gave a silent chuckle at the completely lame attempt to strike up conversation. She gave a simple yet honest answer by pointing to the pink part of her hair.

"Isn't that a little junior high of you?" He asked with mirth in his voice. His smile was quickly cut off by four tiny fingers jabbing him sharply between his ninth and tenth ribs. He winced at the pain of her digits reaching deeper than he initially thought they could. Looking over he saw her holding up her scroll to show him a message she had somehow typed while he was preoccupied with the jab to his side.

 **Don't mock the color scheme.** The message was accompanied with an all too familiar cocky smirk on the girl's face. He nodded as they quickly resumed walking.

He couldn't help but smile despite the still lingering discomfort in his side that reminded him to refrain from any excessive teasing in the near future. He found himself loving both of the smiles he had seen from her today.

The first was a wicked looking smile that always seemed to be present upon her face. A cocky smirk that showed she was confident in being able to handle herself no matter her opponent. It was the smile that scared the ever loving shit out of everybody who didn't actually know the girl. To almost everybody else, it was the smile of a sadistic killer who showed no mercy to her opponents. To Fenix, however, it the look of an independent woman who didn't care what others thought of her. She was who she was and the only opinions that mattered were a select few that she cared about. He just thought how lucky he was to be included in that select few.

The second smile was one that had the potential to melt Fenix's will. An authentic gentle and caring smile that he had only seen directed towards him in the short few days he had known her. It was a much calmer smile than the first, yet it spoke volumes more. The most important message it spoke to him was that the girl actually cared for him in a similar way that he cared for her. Something that he wasn't quite sure was love yet, but was definitely more than just liking her. If he was being honest with himself it was the smile that he preferred of the two even though the first one looked almost natural on her to be honest. It just fit her personality too well.

"Well in case you couldn't tell I actually have two favorite colors." He joked to her as he brought his attention back out of his inner musings. She just rolled her eyes at him and turned to look in front of them.

"No really, orange and blue. And I know this may come off as odd but I was wondering if I could ask you some questions about your heterchromia iridum? Only if it's ok with you though." He asked a little hesitantly for fear of accidently tripping over a sore subject for Neo. To his relief she just shrugged and nodded for him to go on asking whatever it was he wanted to know.

"Alright. Well for starters, were you born that way or did something happen to turn you like that?" Neo looked a little offended so Fenix hurriedly rephrased his question.

"Ok let me think of a better way to say that. Umm, ok you see my eyes?" Neo nodded as she peered into those fiery orbs. Before she could get lost in thought about how dreamy they were, Fenix continued.

"Well they weren't always this color. They were originally blue." He pinched the side of his shirt and brought it forward to emphasize his point.

"This deep blue. And then when I got my aura unlocked they changed to this." Once again to emphasize his point he pointed to his eyes. Neo was quite surprised at this. She knew that aura unlocking could produce some anomalies but she had never heard of it physically changing a person.

"So what I'm asking is, did your heterchromic traits appear when you got your aura unlocked or something along those lines? Or are you a natural pinkette/brunette?" He finished with a chuckle which caused Neo to bust out into a fit of silent giggles.

 **Au naturale cutie.** She winked at him after he had finished reading her scroll. He grinned and rolled his eyes at her playful remark.

"So In my experience hunters usually get their color scheme from their family in some shape or form. Who did your heterchromia come from?" Fenix asked innocently.

Neo froze up at his question though. She had initially thought agreed to his questioning thinking he wouldn't trigger any painful memories but that is what he had just done. Her mind was trying to battle the inner turmoil that came when somebody mentioned her family. Fenix noticed how her hand gripped down on his arm tightly and her posture seemed much tenser at his question. Luckily they were passing a small park at the moment so he led the seemingly shell shocked girl to a bench for them to sit down at. As they neared the bench Neo seemed to have gotten it together as she tried to fight off Fenix from making her sit down. He firmly planted her on the bench and sat next to her.

"Wana talk about it?" He asked. Her reply was to cross her arms, give an annoyed huff, and turn away from him. He found it absolutely adorable but had to keep himself collected because of the serious nature of the situation. He noticed that she didn't look like she was going to give up and tell him what had caused her to act that way. He gave a depressed sigh and went with the only method that he knew how to progress with this complicated issue.

"I know what it's like for family to be a touchy subject." He paused as he noticed her perk up.

"Ever wonder how I got the scar on my arm?" He asked as she turned around to face him now. She could feel the emotion radiating from him as he took a deep breath. He then went into the story of how the Grimm attack on his village came to pass. How he ended up with the scar from the Beowulf on his arm. How he, his sister, and his father made it to the village square. How the Goliath trampled and killed his sister and father. Then how his mother unlocked his aura and died protecting him. He ended his tale with stating simply that a hunter team pulled him out of the ruins of his village and got him to safety. Once he finished, he sat there in a downhearted silence staring at his feet. After a few moments, the sound of typing on a scroll caught his attention and he looked to see Neo typing with a very intense look on her face. He waited patiently for a few minutes while she typed away. Finally with a resigned huff, she handed her scroll to Fenix for him to read.

 **My father was a horrible man. Ever since I can remember he would beat us. At first he made it act like it was justifiable, like we had done something to deserve it. After a few years he stopped caring and just beat us anytime he felt like it. My mother always tried to protect me but she never did anything to stop the abuse. She was everything to me. The complete opposite of my dad. Loving, caring, and would do anything to make sure I had the best she could provide. I was so tired of her taking the front of all of dad's rage so one day when I was eight, I stood up to him. Worst mistake of my life.**

After reading the message Fenix put his arm around the girl and brought her into a close one armed hug. After consoling the girl silently for a few moments he noticed she was typing again with her free hand.

"You don't have to go on. I understand." She just waved him off and continued to type.

 **He started with his typical gig. Yelling at us for something that was in no way our fault but we were still getting the blame for. Something in me just snapped. I don't remember if it was something he said or just years of pent up anger finally surfacing. I started yelling back at him. I was calling him all sorts of names that I had heard him call us. He didn't like that, all the sudden he grabbed me by the throat and slammed my back into the floor. He followed through with the attack, straddling me and putting an iron grip with both of his hands on my throat. As he was strangling me my mother was trying to pry him off. Just before I lost consciousness I saw her finally get his attention by slapping him fully across the face. His rage then redirected to her and he lashed out. She fell backwards and hit the back of her head on the corner of the countertop.**

The two sat in silence with Fenix holding the teary eyed girl as she typed up the remainder of her tale.

 **I don't know how somebody could take years of beatings like we did and then die from something so simplistic. She was gone before her body hit the floor. I slipped out of consciousness at that point and woke up later in the hospital. Apparently somebody had called the police because when they arrived they found my father kneeling over her corpse begging her to get up with me half strangled to death in the middle of the kitchen. He was sent to prison and I was put in the foster care program. A year later I was found by the Order and as they say the rest is history.**

"So he's still in jail?" Fenix couldn't help himself from asking. Neo loudly exhaled and typed on her scroll again.

 **Oh no I killed the bastard. After discovering my semblances and a few years of training from the Order, I visited his jail cell. He recognized me and tried to act like he was justified for what he had done. I slit his throat and let him bleed out.**

Fenix's mind was reeling from the sad story of the beauty sitting next to him. He gently moved her into a position where he could fully embrace her. As he did he tried to hold back the tears that threatened to escape.

"I'm so so sorry that happened to you sweet thing." He managed to say between the sobs.

He felt her shoulders moving and he assumed she was crying at this point. He pulled out of the hug to see that her eyes were indeed full of tears but she wasn't crying. She was silently laughing. He was confused beyond all measure until he saw her move her hands.

'I love that name.' She signed as she looked at him with those eyes gleaming and a look of pure joy on her face.

"Well I love you." He clasped his hand over his mouth as soon as he realized he had let those words escape from his traitorous mouth. A sharp inhale of air made him notice the stunned look upon Neo's face. He quickly moved to try and salvage the situation.

"I-I mean… well, I think I do. I know this is a bit early but you're constantly on my mind, your smile brightens up my world, and… well I could go on but you get the idea?" She slowly nodded with a dumbstruck look still upon her face.

"For Oum's sake we were both trained by the saints! How ironic is that?" The revelation that they had both been in the same division of the Order sent Neo further into her shocked state.

"Just being around you means so much to me Neo. I honestly just want to see you happy and I would be so happy if you would do me the honor of being my girlfriend." That finally broke her. She froze up and sat there not believing all this was actually happening. Fenix didn't know it was possible for her eyes to go any wider but sure enough he saw them reach a new definition of 'as big as dinner plates.' After a few awkward moments he finally caved under stare.

"Uh Neo?" That seemed to be enough to break her trance as she shook her head side to side. She then realized she had blanked and blushed a bit as she shyly nodded to answer his question. The look of fear that she would reject his feelings quickly disappeared to a wide goofy grin.

"Awesome." He said as she playfully slapped his arm. She wondered why he was so nervous. It wasn't like their previous make out sessions weren't a good indicator that she at least had some feelings for him. She wondered how this had affected him so. He seemed like a calm and collected person every other time she had interacted with him. She smirked a little at the realization that he was actually nervous she wouldn't return his feelings. Such a silly boy. She then remembered that he was indeed five years younger than her. That answered her question for her.

"Whoa didn't realize we have been sitting here that long." Fenix's voice broke her from her thoughts as she looked at her scroll to notice the time. They had indeed been sitting there for a lot longer than she would have thought.

"Come on, let's go shop for a little bit before our grand finale for tonight." He said playfully as he got up and offered her a hand helping her up. She accepted it and the two continued their walk towards the shopping center.

When they arrived Neo took the lead and started dragging Fenix to all sorts of stores. Nothing he wasn't used to since his stay with the Arcs had assured that he was constantly used as a pack mule alongside Jaune for the seven sisters. However, unlike the Arc girls, Neo made sure to take him to many stores more for men. She continued to try different outfits on him to see what she would like to see him in. By the end of the day, Fenix was tired of playing dress up for his new girlfriend and Neo was satisfied with the clothes she had bought for herself and her new boyfriend.

They started walking towards their final secret destination. They made a quick stop at a square in the city to get rid of their purchases. Neo teleported away to drop her stuff off at her place, while Fenix called his rocket locker. He shoved his stuff in and sent it back to the school just as Neo reappeared. They continued on with their date as Fenix led her to his secret destination.

Neo was actually surprised to find him leading her towards an arcade bar. As they walked in Neo found herself in what she would consider a nerd's paradise. Video games, pool tables, dart boards and arcade/amusement machines lines the walls of the establishment. In the center was a large circular bar that looked to be very well stocked.

She looked to see him grinning like somebody who had just hit the jackpot. Shooting him a 'really?' look she poked his side to get his attention. His smile didn't falter when he noticed the look she was giving him.

"Come on it'll be fun." He said cheerily. Neo just inwardly sighed as she realized he was a super huge closet nerd. She then smiled and raised an eyebrow as she pretended to wipe something off the corner of her mouth.

"Oh ha ha. I'm not drooling, I'm just excited to try this place out." He said with a roll of his eyes.

She pointed to the bar and wordlessly ordered him to go get her a drink while she started making her way over towards the dart boards.

"What would you like?" He called after her.

She just turned, shrugged her shoulders, and winked at him.

"So on our first date, I'm supposed to know what you would like to drink without any hints?" She nodded and winked again as she turned back around to continue walking away. Making sure to sway her hips just a little extra to add to her sass. Fenix just grinned as he walked to the bar.

Neo grabbed the appropriate darts and started causally throwing them at the board as she waited for her personal man servant to bring her her drink. As she did she heard somebody walking up behind her. She turned expecting to see Fenix but was slightly caught off guard to see three teenage looking boys standing there.

"Hey there. You are way too hot to be left alone. Why don't you hang out with us? It'll make your night much better." The one Neo would assume was the ringleader said with a cocky attitude and a flirtatious wink. She just rolled her eyes and turned away from the boys waving her hand dismissively.

"Aw come on, don't be like that." The same boy spoke up and grabbed her shoulder as once she had fully turned away. Neo acted on instinct and grabbed the boy's hand. She twisted it hard and spun herself around to round house kick him right across his face. The boy landed on his back with a loud thud and gasped for air since it had been knocked out of him from the collision. With one of the boy's hands still in a tight hold, Neo brandished her parasol. She flicked the hidden blade out of the tip of her umbrella as she stabbed it into the floor between the boy's legs. Everybody in the place stared at the petite ice cream colored girl as she just maliciously grinned at the boy on the ground.

"Guys I think that's her way of saying fuck off." All attention turned to Fenix standing before the group holding a drink in each hand. He had his eyes closed but once he opened them they were on fire to signify his semblance was active.

"NOW." He said calmly but with an amount of sternness to say there was going to be no arguing over the matter. Quickly the boys got their friend up and ran out of the bar.

"Was that really necessary?" Fenix asked as the fire in his eyes died down when he switched his semblance off. Neo just shrugged and grabbed the drink out of her hands that she assumed was for her. She took a sip and realized his choice in drinks was not just a good one.

It was fantastic.

Neo glanced to the drink to ask him what it was.

"Ah it's called a side saddle. Was introduced to it in Vacuo and quickly learned the recipe. Gave it to the bartender here and told him he might want to hold onto it. Could make him a lot of money if girls start coming in here." Neo nodded in agreement as she took another much larger drink. She then nodded to his glass to ask what he was having.

"Whiskey." He stated simply and Neo nodded once again.

Fenix went up to the dart board and put in the appropriate lien for a few games.

"Ladies first." He said as he stepped back to allow her to throw. Neo wasted no time in throwing three darts at the same time, all landing in the bullseye. Fenix's eyebrows shot up in surprise as he looked to see Neo with her signature cocky grin plastered across her face.

"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" He asked as Neo just nodded and went back to sipping on her drink.

To Neo's surprise, she actually enjoyed the place a lot. After thoroughly spanking Fenix at darts, they went to try out the different games the place had to offer. They found that Neo was much better at the more traditional games such as darts, billiards, and skeeball. Fenix, on the other hand, was more skilled at the video games. After a few hours of playing games and drinking they realized Fenix needed to start heading back to Beacon since the last bullhead was due to leave soon. The exited the bar and started walking toward the air docks.

"How in the hell did you get so good at those games?" Fenix asked Nee with an awestruck shout. Neo just smirked and shrugged her shoulders. She knew it was due to her time with Roman and the White Fang. When the people of the criminal underground get bored they usually resulted to playing cards, darts, or pool. Neo just had a lot of practice in on those games but she wasn't about to tell that to Fenix. At least not yet.

"Oh I see how it is." Fenix spoke as Neo stuck her tongue out at him.

'You know for being older than me she can be quite immature at times.' Fenix thought to himself. They continued to talk about how much fun they had as they walked arm in arm to the docks. Once they arrived they had a few minutes before the bullhead began boarding so they stood off to the side of the main area.

"Listen Neo, about what we talked about in the park." He paused as he got her full attention. She didn't really want to end the night on this topic but there seemed to be something eating at him about it. Fenix, paused only because he wasn't sure how to go forward with what he was about to tell her. After a few moments he finally sighed and pulled out his scroll.

"You know how I asked you about your heterchromia?" Neo nodded in response.

"And then about how you got it from your family?" She nodded again and held up her index finger to stop him. She typed on her scroll quickly as Fenix continued to navigate through his.

 **I never answered your question did I? Well the pink is from my mother. She had both the pink hair and eyes as well as my light skin color. The brown is from my father's side, more specifically from his sister. I only met my aunt a few times due to my father being the way he was, but I know I got the brown hair and eyes from her.**

"I'm glad you told me that but I wasn't exactly going for that." Fenix chuckled as Neo looked at him in confusion.

"I was asking you those questions because of… this." He said as he turned his scroll to show it to Neo.

Neo currently found herself in one of the most surprised states she had ever been in her life. Her jaw dropped and eyes shot wide open as she stared at the picture that was currently on Fenix's scroll.

 **(A/N): I know I know you hate me for cliff hangers but I swear it will be worth it! NEXT CHAPTER IS THE ACTUAL FAMILY WEEKEND CHAPTER AND I THINK YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO LOVE IT!**

 **Sorry it took so long to get this out guys. I actually had most of this chapter written out a few weeks ago when my laptop crashed. First the battery died and I replaced it only for the screen to give out. I tried typing it on my tablet but that was just a train wreck. Then I had to wait for a Bluetooth keyboard so I could actually type it on my tablet. So once again, sorry for the long delay.**

 **If you enjoyed this chapter (or just the story in general) please favorite /follow /review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**(A/N): So first off this is the start of the family weekend arc section. If you aren't up to date with the show I would suggest doing so. I don't own RWBY in any way but the parents that I mention in this chapter that appear on the show I'm not going to give much detail on. Hope you all enjoy!**

Chapter 13: Runs in the Family

'They are coming' he thought to himself with the most dramatic of voices he could muster inside his head. He was standing towards the back of the large group of students that had congregated at the airship docks. As a matter a fact, he was so far towards the back he was actually leaning against the gates of Beacon Academy. His anxiety of the most dreaded of days finally arriving being too much for him to stand the crowd of students. To anyone who passed by it was obvious he was having a nervous breakdown. The signs were all there: fidgeting with his fingers, tapping his foot a fast pace, and a look of fear on his face. The boy gave off the appearance that death itself was coming for him. To him the sight of the first passenger airships approaching Beacon for family weekend might as well have been just that.

That is how the rest of team JNPR found their fearless leader Jaune Arc when they arrived to the air docks.

"Jaune, relax. Your family can't be that bad, right?" Pyrrha spoke with a gentle voice as she put a hand on his shoulder. Her calming gesture only caused him to jump as he was jerked away from his thoughts of what his family was going to do to him.

"Pyrrha, have you ever heard of the saying 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'?" He asked.

"I may have heard the phrase yes." She said after an initial giggle escaped from her lips.

"Multiply that times eight and that is the hell that is about to be unleashed on me when that ship lands." Jaune practically whimpered as he pointed to the first airship that was approaching.

"How do ya know they're on that one Jaune-Jaune? Are you psychic?!" Is that what your semblance is?!" Nora yelled out enthusiastically before Ren could cover her mouth to stop her from ranting any further.

"My mother and sisters have had to hold off on scolding me for weeks Nora. Trust me they will be some of the first people off the first ship." Jaune said as he resumed fidgeting.

"Well then you might as well be at the front of the crowd so to avoid them having to search for you Jaune. You wouldn't want to make them any more upset would you?" Pyrrha said as she grabbed his arm and started leading him into the crowd with Ren and Nora close behind.

"Honestly I'm not sure at this point Pyr." He was still too busy worrying to notice the blush that had appeared on Pyrrha's face from him using the nickname he had adopted for her. He continued to be lost in his thoughts as they weaved through the crowd eventually reaching the front. When they did they noticed teams RWBY and FABL standing slightly off to the side of the front of the now dense crowd. Ruby waved as team JNPR approached, catching the attention of the other six.

"Wow vomit boy doesn't look too good. He isn't going to throw up just by being near one of these things is he?" Yang teased but still backed up a bit to protect her precious shoes.

"No, just wondering how much of my body will be left behind once my family is done with me." Jaune replied darkly.

"Yikes. That bad huh?" Ruby questioned the knight.

"You have no idea." Jaune's attitude put the rest of the group into a silent mood until someone's scroll dinged to signal it received a message. The group look up to see Jaune pulling his scroll out and opening it.

"Has the blonde horde arrived yet? Oh ha ha. Very funny Fenix." Jaune said sarcastically to which Yang seemed to take offense to.

"What did he call me?" She shouted furiously as her hair glowed and eyes turned crimson. The signature look that Yang was about to beat the ever loving shit out of somebody. Everybody in the group was a mixture of confused and worried for their own personal safety. All except for Nora who seemed to get it.

"No Yang. Horde. HoooorDAH." She put a very large emphasis on the 'D' ( **A/N: Giggity)** to get the message across.

"Oh." Yang said as her eyes and hair returned to their normal state. Some were wondering how Nora of all people seemed to understand situations like this better than anyone else. When they asked Ren all he could say was, "that's the mystery of Nora."

"He means my family. Speaking of the sister defiling jerk, where is he?" Jaune asked as he noticed Fenix wasn't among their group of friends. The rest of his team looked around to acknowledge that the fire wielder was indeed absent.

"He said something about needing to go to Vale to get a surprise visitor. Maybe we finally get to meet this mysterious girl who he is constantly messaging." Liam boomed loudly enough for the nearby students all turned to see what the giant faunus was going on about. Yang at this point was seething while the rest of the group looked at Fenix's teammates with confusion.

"He thinks he is sneaky about it but its blatantly obvious he has a special someone he is messaging all the time." Alexis spoke up trying to avoid eye contact with Yang for fear the blonde would take her anger out on her.

"Yeah, his nose is glued to his scroll when he isn't in class, studying, or training. Even caught him messaging in Port's class the other day." Beau said off handedly.

"At least he stays awake in class." Weiss shot a glare Yang's way as she finished making her comment.

"Anyways…" Jaune interrupted. "Fenix isn't here so I'll let him know he is going to arrive after my family. They're not going to be happy about that." He mumbled the last bit to himself as he messaged Fenix letting him know he was going to arrive after the families. He got a reply back almost immediately.

 **That's actually perfect. Let everybody know we will be arriving on a bullhead right after the passenger ships clear out. Try and keep everybody at the docks to greet me and my guests. They are going to want to see this. BTW you're welcome in advance Jaune.**

"O-kay?" Jaune said questioningly as everybody turned to look at him again. He turned his scroll around to show Fenix's messages so everybody could read it for themselves.

"On that note who all has family actually arriving?" Yang asked the group as everybody raised their hand except for Blake, Yang, and Ruby.

"Why am I the only one who has parents coming?!" Weiss shrieked to her teammates with a horrified expression replacing her normally calm mannerisms.

"Dad has to clear Patch of a new pack of Grimm that's threatening the local village." Yang said off-handedly.

"And Uncle Qrow is still off on a mission." Ruby piped up with her typical cheery expression.

"Reasons." Blake murmured quietly.

"Why are you acting like this is a bad thing Weiss?" Ruby asked worried about her partner.

"My father is very… difficult to get along with. I was hoping there would be more adults around to keep him in check." Weiss didn't miss the snort that Blake gave out when she mentioned how her father could be. Deciding it wasn't worth her time she just ignored it and looked to the rest of their group.

"By any chance do you think you guys could try and spend a little more time around us? He isn't exactly quiet about his blatant racism towards faunus but he will hold his tongue if there are more people around." She pleaded as she tried to adopt Ruby's puppy dog eyes to use on the other eight. It wasn't near as effective as Ruby's but seeing the heiress in this state caught them off guard.

"I'm sure we can do our best to help Weiss out. Right guys?" Jaune spoke up as he tried to play the hero. Weiss groaned and put her face into her hands as she inwardly wept that the dunce of all people had to be the one to offer his help. She wasn't going to deny it in this situation but she had to make one thing clear.

"Do not think this means I will agree to a date with you because of this Arc." She snapped her head up and pointed accusingly at Jaune. She shot him a fierce glare before it softened and she returned to her prim and proper mannerisms.

"But it doesn't mean I don't appreciate the FRIENDLY gesture." She emphasized the friendly part extremely.

"O-of course Weiss." Jaune replied sheepishly.

At that moment the first airship had begun its docking procedures as it came to a stop at the docks. The dull roar of the engines faded out as they finished landing. A sharp hiss pierced the quiet atmosphere as the passenger ramp began lowering to allow the first wave of guests to depart. Immediately four blonde figures bolted off the ship and bent over the trash cans located at the bottom of the ramp. As they attempted (and failed) to retain their stomachs, Jaune's friends all started snickering at the scene.

"So it runs in the family, eh vomit boy?" Yang teased as she lightly slapped him on the back. A light slap for Yang still equaled a heavy hit as Jaune stumbled to keep himself upright.

"Yeah, four of us kids inherited our dad's air sickness. Lucky us right?" He lamely joked.

"Too bad you didn't get common sense from your mother." A mature female voice spoke up causing Jaune to stand frozen in fear. He slowly turned to come face to face with the stone cold expression on his mother's face. If he would have looked around he would have noticed the glares that were also coming at him from the three sisters flanking his mother as well as the rest of the family that was approaching now that they had recovered from their motion sickness. Jaune Arc wasn't that brave though so he continued to stare into the piercing eyes of his mother. After a few moments of intense silence between the two, Mrs. Arc confirmed Jaune's worst nightmare.

"Girls, get him." She said with an almost evil smirk. At that moment all seven of Jaune's sister pounced on him. Effectively burying him under a dogpile as they all jostled to hug and playfully punch him. Each sister had their unique greeting for their only brother after all.

As Jaune disappeared under the sea of blonde hair and bright colored clothing, some of the group started to worry for the poor boy while others couldn't help but stifle their laughter. That became impossible when after a few seconds, Jaune's dad started laughing a very boisterous laugh. Soon the entire group had lost all sense of concern for Jaune as they joined in on the laughter after it was evident no real harm was going to befall him.

"Hello! My name is Pyrrha Nikos and I am Jaune's partner." Pyrrha started the introductions by speaking with Mrs. Arc.

"Judith Arc, and this is my husband Joseph." Judith nodded her head towards her husband as she returned the handshake offered by Pyrrha. As they locked hands she smiled brightly at the Spartan girl.

"So… before anymore introductions occur, do I need to save our fearless leader from suffocating under there?" Pyrrha pointed as she noticed a gloved hand pop out from the bottom of the pile.

"PYRRHA SAAAAAAVE MEEEEEE!" Came Jaune's cry for salvation from the mix of shouting coming from the dogpile. Pyrrha looked back to Mrs. Arc to see her shaking her head as she smiled at the familiar scene.

"He's survived through worse. This is actually a typical greeting for him." Came the loud and jolly voice of Jaune's father. Pyrrha suddenly felt a little bad for her beloved partner having to deal with this type of behavior on a regular basis. It suddenly made sense how he could handle Nora so easily now.

"OOOHHHH BEAUREGARD!" The call from a woman with an extremely southern belle accent interrupted everybody watching the Arc sibling reunion. All turned to Beau with a slightly disbelieving look as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

"Dammit ma. Didn't have to use the full name." He muttered quietly as Liam and Alexis started grinning from the sight of the most stoic member of their team getting embarrassed. They turned to see a woman in a peach colored plain looking dress waving her hand above her head to get their attention. This action brought the wolf ears that sprouted out from her brown hair to everybody's attention. Behind her was a man garbed in a white shirt and brown overalls with what appeared to be a mountain lion's tail swaying behind him.

"Everybody, this is my ma and pa." Beau spoke simply as he embraced his mother in a hug.

"Oh my baby boy! How have you been sweetheart?" Beau's mom began gushing over him asking all sorts of questions. Most of the questions centered around how his well being had been. Beau sighed as he pulled out of the hug and got her attention.

"Ma, I'm fine. Team has been good and friends are all nice." He finished as he turned and motioned towards his group of friends. His mother got an odd gleam in her eye as she settled on Alexis.

"Oh my aren't you just the cutest thing ever!" She squealed as she let go of Beau just to grab Alexis in as tight of an embrace as she had just had Beau in.

"Ma, please." Beau begged as his father walked up along side him.

"You know there is no stopping her." Both father and son shared a laugh.

"Its good to see you."

"Likewise pa." Beau smiled as he and his father shook hands.

"Oh you should have seen how much fuss he made about getting the house ready for us to leave on time." Beau's mom spoke loudly to her son as she was now in the process of hugging Blake.

"Oh really? Thought you'd rather stay and watch the place than spend a weekend away." Beau asked with a quirked eyebrow towards his dad. His father had been raised on the family farm and never ventured too far. And when he did it was rarely for more than a day.

"Dear…" Beau's dad tried to plead with his wife for her to stop only for his pleas to be ignored.

"Oh he tried, but I told him under no circumstances was he going to miss seeing our baby boy at this big fancy school." His mother spoke now hugging Nora who was surprisedly hugging back just as much enthusiasm. She then let go and moved on to Weiss who shied away.

"Forgive me ma'am but for your own sake you should probably avoid me." Weiss said almost ashamed.

"And why would I do that dear?" She said ignoring Weiss's complaints as she embraced the heiress.

"Because…"

"WHAT IN THE DEVIL ARE YOU DOING TO MY DAUGHTER YOU ANIMAL?!" Came the booming answer.

"Because my father isn't the most understanding of people." Weiss said sadly as she looked to see Jacques and Whitney Schnee walking towards their group. Jacques had a scowl on his face while Whitney looked happy to be seeing Weiss. At first glance they appeared to be the two most polar opposite people you could imagine marrying each other. As Jacques reached the group he attempted to confront the wolf faunus who had the audacity to hug his daughter. His advance was suddenly halted by a monster of a hand suddenly clamping down on his shoulder. He followed the tree trunk of an arm that the hand was attached to until his gaze settled on the face of a burly man with a thick red beard in a Viking-esque outfit.

"I would take care not to cause a scene like that Jacques." The man spoke firmly but not harshly. Mr. Schnee's hateful look quickly evaporated at the sight of his old friend. He nodded knowing full well this friend would tear him apart if he acted up in front of the children.

"A pleasure as always Odin." He said snidely as soon as a pink blur rocketed past him and latched on the gargantuan man. Seeing his opportunity, Jacques didn't hesitate to move on towards his own daughter to have a quick word with her.

"Daaaaddyyyyyyyyy!" Nora squealed as she hugged him as tightly as she could. Which amazingly the man didn't seem phased at all regardless of Nora's immense strength. Her father's gaze softened immediately at the sight of his little girl.

"Ah my princess! How have you been min kjaere?" Odin asked as he seemed to suddenly transform from a large intimidating man into a doting father figure.

"I've been great dad! My team is the best! We've got a champion fighter in Pyrrha, Ren is basically a ninja, I can bench five of me, and we have our fearless leader Jaune!" She finished introducing her teammates by pointing to the pile of blonde girls still wrestling for position to greet their brother. At the sound of his name a gloved hand appeared once again out of the mess to give a weak wave.

"Lucky boy." Odin chuckled as he received a slap on his shoulder from his daughter and a spiteful glare from the red-headed champion fighter on her team.

"No daddy those are all his sisters!" Nora spoke as if what her father had said was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard.

"Ah well I guess not all boys these days can be as successful at getting women as your old man." He boasted loudly as Nora started acting like she was going to throw up. Ren took this moment to intervene to save the rest of the group from any further Valkyrie family interactions.

"It is good to see you again Mr. Valkyrie." He said politely as he bowed.

"Ah Ren my boy! It is wonderful to see you as well!" He then picked his daughter's best friend and gave him a crushing hug that would have put Yang or Nora's to shame.

"Your parents were just behind me. I wonder, oh there they are! Li! An! They are over here!" He yelled as he set Ren down and turned him in the direction his parents would be coming from. As they came into view Ren could see they were accompanied by another couple. A tall slender man in a suite with light brown hair and green eyes walked alongside an equally tall fit looking woman with red hair and hazel eyes in dress pants and a red

blouse. Ren could easily tell they were Pyrrha's parents so he got her attention and pointed to both sets of their parents. She smiled as they both met their respective parents as they reached the now larger group.

"Greetings mother, father." Ren bowed respectfully as he met his parents. They both smiled and bowed in return before An pulled Ren into a hug as Li looked on in admiration. While the Rens were having their family reunion, Pyrrha and her parents were exchanging greetings.

"Hello father it is wonderful to see you. You as well mother." Pyrrha smiled at seeing her parents again. She was met with the usual neutral faces of her parents.

"Pyrrha have you been keeping up with your workouts?" Her mother asked of her.

"Well yes-" She attempted to delve further into that topic but was quickly cut off by her father speaking up.

"And have you been replying to your fan mail in a timely manner?"

"Yes of course-" Once again she was cut off from any further explanation.

"Excellent. It is good to see your time here isn't being wasted." And with that both of Pyrrha's parents brushed past her as they made their way towards the Schnee CEO. Undoubtedly attempting to strike up some sort of business proposal in order to get their daughter more publicity. She sighed as her eyes locked on to Weiss's so they could share an apologetic look that read 'I'm sorry'. Pyrrha then glanced back to the bulk of the group to see that the object of her affection had finally been released from his sister's grasp. While all the sisters were starting to mingle with the rest of their group, Jaune still lay on the ground in a comically dazed state.

"Jaune!" She gasped as she quickly rushed over to pick him up.

"Are you all right? Does anything hurt? Can you move all your limbs properly?" She started talking a mile a minute as she smothered him with questions making sure he was indeed fine. This action got the attention of the rest of their group as everybody looked on as the girl gave her obvious affection while the boy obliviously brushed it off.

"Yeah I'm fine Pyr. They have actually put me through worse before." He laughed as he tried to settle his partner down. He missed the knowing looks his sisters were giving him while Pyrrha's parents were glaring hatefully at him. Worst of all, he missed the gleam in his mother's eye as she watched the two interacting. It reminded her a lot of herself and Joseph when they were younger. She decided that she would have to play matchmaker since her son had inherited his father's obliviousness when it came to the opposite gender's feelings. That and she was beyond ready for grandbabies at this point in her life and the idea of little red headed blue eyed children running around was too much for her to resist.

"So aren't you going to introduce me to your girlfriend dear?" She asked smugly.

"What?! No its not like that!" Jaune sputtered as Pyrrha turned a nice shade of red from the embarrassment.

Jaune's mother started making her way towards the two when a yelp from Blake caught everybody's attention. They turned to see Blake being picked up from behind in a big hug. The woman who had ahold of Blake wore a black and white dress. Her attire wasn't what had people gapping at the sight, what they were all staring at was how this woman appeared to be a replica of what they all expected an older Blake to look like. That and the fact that she had two black cat ears standing atop of her equally black hair.

"Oh my baby girl!" She sighed loudly in contentment. As the words left her mouth Blake visibly froze up.

"Mom?!" She shreiked.

"Kali." A gruff voice spoke up as if to lightly scold the faunus woman. As Blake was put down she turned to see her fears had come true. Both of her parents were standing there. Her mother looking at her lovingly while her father was behind her pinching the bridge of his nose as he shook his head disbelievingly at his wife's antics.

"What are you doing here?" Blake asked cautiously.

"Well sweetie we received a message asking us to be here for parent's weekend. Seeing as how we haven't heard from you in a few months we just assumed it was your way of telling us you wanted to meet up. I'm guessing it wasn't you was it?" Blake's mom seemed hurt that her daughter was acting like she was upset that they were there.

Blake had finally run off from the White Fang like they had been begging her to do ever since it turned militant. However they assumed she was going to stay in contact once she fled, but she didn't. The last time her parents had talked to her was before she left the White Fang. They had been worried sick about what happened to her until they got this message telling them they were invited to parent's weekend at Beacon Academy. Since they only had one child they figured it must have been Blake contacting them and saying she wanted to see them.

"Blake, did you not send for us?" Her father asked.

"No. No I didn't." She whispered.

"Then…" Kali's next sentence was cut off by somebody deliberately coughing to get their attention. They three Belladona's turned to see one of the Arc sisters in front of them.

"That would be my doing. My apologies I didn't mean to cause any issues but I just assumed you would want them here. After seeing my brother's initiation footage I did background checks on all of his associates. Doing so I found your parents and sent them their invite since it appeared you had forgotten to do so." The three faunus just stared at the odd blonde girl who acted like what she did was a common occurrence. Overhearing the conversation, Jaune decided to make his way over to try and explain it a little bit to Blake and her family.

"Ah sorry, that's my sister Jessica. She works in the Atlas robotics division and is an absolute genius when it comes to anything about computers. Her social skills could use some work though." Jaune finished as he shot an annoyed look at his sister while she just smiled smugly before she stuck her tongue out at him. Blake sighed before putting on a small smile and turning to talk to her parents again.

"Well that explains that, and yes I am glad you are here mom. Its just, I wanted to take some time before I told everybody." Blake explained with a slightly depressed tint to her voice. She was sad that now her friends and teammates would look at her differently. Or so she thought until Yang spoke up.

"You seriously thought that you being part faunus would change anything?" Yang asked amusedly.

"W-well. Yes?" Blake stuttered out completely surprised that everybody seemed to be taking it so well.

"Blakey Blakey Blakey. We would never judge you for something like that." Yang chuckled as she shook her head at her partner's paranoia.

"Yeah you're our friend and teammate Blake. Nothing is going to change that." Ruby piped up as she suddenly appeared next to Yang in a flurry of rose petals. At that moment Weiss stepped up as well. This made Blake nervous because Weiss was the one she was most worried about with this issue.

"As long as you aren't one of those White Fang terrorists then I suppose I can deal with this." Weiss offered a small smile to show that she wasn't going to be a problem just because Blake had faunus blood in her. Blake smiled back but was inwardly worried about how she was going to explain to her team that she had indeed once been apart of the White Fang. She decided she should just enjoy the fact that Weiss didn't blow up at the moment and cross that bridge when she came to it. She then felt somebody tap her on the shoulder and she turned to see Liam and Beau standing there.

"You might as well show them now darlin'." Beau said as he glanced up at her bow to show what he meant. Liam crossed his arms and grunted as he nodded in approval. She had secretly told the two of them with Fenix helping to explain why she kept it hidden a few days ago. It was the fire wielder's idea to tell their faunus friends and the two were very understanding about the it. Seeing as now was as good a time as ever Blake just sighed and reached up to untie her bow. With one swift motion it came undone and she pulled it down to reveal her cat ears to the entire world. She then turned back towards her team. She was surprised to find Yang holding Ruby back from rushing her and Weiss staring at her wide eyed.

"That explains the fixation with tuna." Weiss mumbled under her breath but Blake heard it and laughed.

"Thanks Weiss. Yang, is that necessary?" She asked eyeing the struggling sisters.

"Yeah. Unless you want her pouncing you." Yang grunted out as she continued to hold onto her squirming little sister.

"Must. Pet. Kitty. Ears." Ruby said between different attempts to break Yang's hold. Blake just had a blank look on her face before she smiled and stepped towards the sisters causing them to stop struggling.

"Someday I will let you feel them Ruby. But you should know that is very disrespectful to touch a faunus's trait unless they allow you to. Right now I'm not comfortable with it but It'll happen soon, don't worry." After Blake's explanation Ruby slumped over showing she wasn't going to be a problem for the time being and Yang released her. In the few seconds of silence that followed as team RWBY gathered around to have a team hug, Jacques Schnee decided it was time to let his thoughts on the matter be known.

"Well I think this is lunacy! Look at her! She is no better than-" He was cut off by a hand grasping his shoulder firmly again and squeezing a pressure point. This hand was smaller than Odin's but the applied pressure to the soft spot in his shoulder caused him to wince in pain. He looked to see Joseph Arc was the culprit and he was glaring at the CEO hard.

"Walk away Jacques and take a few moments to cool your head." The elder Arc said coldly.

"But this-" He motioned towards Blake to more than likely say something out of line but was silenced again by increased pressure by Joseph.

"Walk. Away." He emphasized his point by pushing the Schnee male slightly backwards. Jacques made to have a face off against Joseph but noticed all the other parents (minus Hellena and Achilles Nikos) took stances to show there was no arguing the Arc's orders. With a huff that sounded suspiciously like one Weiss would give he turned and walked away from the group. Whitney Schnee watched as her husband stomped away as if he were throwing a tantrum.

"Thank you Jo." She said to the man who put her husband in his place before moving to stand alongside her daughter.

"OUT OF MY WAY!" The shout of Jacques brought their attention back to see him yelling at two women who parted to let him past. One was a faunus who had white hair and rabbit ears. She wore a lavender dress that only reached her knees with white leggings underneath. The other, was a taller woman who wore a flowing navy blue dress with turquoise hair. Upon noticing them two members of team FABL ran to greet them.

"Mom!" Alexis yelled as she spotted her mother in her formal blue dress. She wrapped her mother in a hug as soon as she reached her.

"Hello my dear." Her mother responded and then they fell into talk about how Alexis's time at Beacon had been so far.

The arctic hare faunus found herself swooped up by her youngest son when he reached her. Squeezing her tightly as if he had not seen her in ages. From an onlookers perspective it was evident that Liam was a big momma's boy. As they were embraced Liam whispered to his mother.

"Any word from papa and Magni?" He asked with worry in his voice. It had been over a year since his older brother decided to follow their father's footsteps in joining the White Fang. They had not heard from either in a long time and their concern only continued to grow with each passing day.

"None." She replied sorrowfully. Liam took a moment to hug her tighter in an attempt to console her. This was not the time to cause his precious mother more unneeded stress. This was a time to distract her from her constant worrying and make her happy.

"Momma. I missed you." He spoke softly as he set her down and kneeled down so he was eye level with her. It was the gentlest any of his friends had heard him speak since they had known him.

"And I you my little teddy bear." She replied with a smile as she put a hand on his face. Their moment was interrupted by a high pitched squealing sound coming from behind Liam. They both turned to see Nora acting like she had just witnessed the cutest thing in her entire life.

"TEDDY BEAR?! Can I puhleeeaaase call you that Liam?" She begged as she shot forward and latched onto his arm. Liam blushed a fearsome shade of red as Nora started cuddling his arm like he was an actual teddy bear. Liam's mother raised an eyebrow towards her son in amusement and curiosity at the situation.

"Oh? And who might this be Liam?" She asked teasingly since she could see how her big strong baby boy was turned to putty in this bubbly girl's embrace.

"Yes my little one who is this?" Came the gruff and angry voice of Odin from where Nora had just come from. As Liam tried not to wilt under the intense glare Odin was shooting him Nora detached and went to give her dad the exact same hug she had just given Liam.

"That's Liam daddy! He is on one of the teams we are friends with, team FABL! It has him, Beau, Alexis, and Fenix. Hey when is Fenix getting here anyways?" She had pointed out each member as she introduced them until it came to Fenix. Everybody in the group seemed to be distracted by the fact they were still missing one member except for Odin who continued to glare hatefully at Liam.

At the mention of Fenix's name multiple females in the group perked up and started asking why he wasn't there to greet them. All were from the Arc clan except for one odd inquisitive look coming from Whitney Schnee.

"Fenix? As in Fenix Fall?" She asked Nora.

"That's the one!" The hammer wielder stated excitedly.

"Hmm, interesting." Mrs. Schnee mused as she thoughtfully stroked her chin with a grin on her face.

"Mother?" Weiss asked worriedly. The only time she had seen her mother like this with boys her age was when she was thinking of suitor candidates. That is when her father actually listened to her mother's input.

"Oh don't worry. Its not for you dear." Mrs. Schnee attempted to wave her daughters distress off but her statement only increased it.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!" The heiress shouted completely horrified that her parents would consider her older sister for Fenix. Her worrying was cut off by Jaune shouting to the group.

"Ok everybody we were told to try and keep you all here until Fenix arrived. He had to go pick somebody up in Vale via bullhead. I just got a message from him that they are on approach." With that the group started making its way towards the landing pads since the passenger airships had finished clearing out. They looked to see a lone bullhead approaching from the direction of Vale. Many of the Arc girls were getting jittery at the idea of seeing Fenix again.

As the bullhead touched down the group shielded their eyes from the gusts of wind coming from the bullhead's engines. Usually the bullhead would touchdown, open the side doors, and drop its passengers off before taking off again. To much of the hunters in training's surprise, this bullhead kept its doors closed and started to shut off its engines once it had successfully landed. When the engines finally died down the side doors finally popped open. Everybody fell into a state of shock at the sight they beheld once the doors completely opened to reveal three people getting out of the bullhead.

Many of the students were expecting two of the people who got out. The first and most obvious was team FABL's leader and renown fire wielder Fenix Fall. The second one, that irked most of the teenage blonde females at the landing pad was Neo. She walked beside Fenix as she held onto his free arm. She was in the blonde haired blue eyed disguise that she had used to see Fenix at the initiation ceremony. Since the Arc's had already seen her in that particular disguise she and Fenix had both agreed that would be the most logical one to use for the day. She had decided to just wear a pink shirt and white jeans with her disguise. She really didn't care if people thought it didn't match with her disguise's hair and eyes, it was her color scheme and she was sticking to it.

Some of the Arc girls as well as Yang would have been furious at the sight of Neo clutching onto Fenix's arm. That is, had it not been for the third person who overpowered the girl's feelings of jealousy and kept them flabbergasted.

The third person in question had her head resting on Fenix's shoulder on the opposite side of Neo. Her hands laid limp at her sides to show she was asleep. Her tiny figure had her back turned to the group so she could lay comfortably across his chest. As they continued walking towards the group Fenix was prodding the child to try and wake them.

Child.

That simple word echoed through everybody's mind. The adults had for the most part recovered from the initial shock and looked on at the sight of the young man trying to wake the little girl. The students, however, had not fully snapped out of it yet. They were so floored that the big secret that Fenix had been stalling on revealing to them, was that he had a kid? Then, one by one, it slowly started to click. Just then Fenix and his little party arrived at the group.

"So here's my big surprise. Everybody, I'd like you to meet my daughter. Flayr Fall." He said as he turned to present the still snuggling girl to the group. They expected to see the face of a sleeping child but that wasn't what they were greeted with at all.

They were instead met with the wide heterochromatic eyes of the toddler. As the girl realized she had a crowd she sat up straight still being held by her young father. As she did this the rest of the group now had the chance to get a good look at her.

Her eyes and hair were the most noticeable features about her. The two different colored eyes caught the attention of the group. Her right eye looked just like Fenix's. At a quick glance it appeared to be a fiery orange but when they looked closely they could see the 'fiery' aspect was quite literal. Her iris looked like a flame that was constantly flickering. Her left eye did not have the same lively feature that her right eye did. It was a constant deep cobalt blue. Her hair matched the same color scheme as her eyes except they were on alternate sides. Where her right eye was the fiery orange, the right side of her hair was cobalt blue and where her left eye was blue, the left side of her hair was orange. As if to accentuate her hair, it was perfectly split down the middle where the two colors met and was tied into short pigtails at the back.

Other features noticable about the little girl was her face. Now most people will say all toddlers look cute at this age but this little girl was levels above the typical toddler cuteness. The level of cuteness that deserved to be used for marketing children's clothing lines. One could tell even at this young age that this child was going to grow to be a beautiful woman.

She was also wearing a little outfit that matched her heterochromatic color scheme. A cobalt blue tutu with equally blue frills that had orange trim along the edges. She had little orange tights underneath the tutu as well as blue tennis shoes. She was also wearing a t-shirt that was blue as well. On the front of the shirt the words "Daddy's Girl" were printed in white lettering along with more orange trim.

"I may or may not have picked out the outfit." Fenix spoke as if he were slightly embarrassed that everybody noticed how he dressed her up to match himself. The hunters in training just took turns staring at the father daughter duo not knowing what to do or say in this situation. Finally, Jaune broke the awkward atmosphere as he walked up to the two.

"Congratulations man. Now the change in the color scheme for you makes more sense." He chuckled as he shook Fenix's hand that was now free from Neo's grasp.

"Thanks Jaune. Flayr, this is your uncle Jaune. Can you say hi?" He said introducing his daughter to his best friend.

"Hi." The little girl echoed cutely. This caused many of the on looking girls to sigh and aww at the scene. Fenix then made his way over to the rest of the Arc family. Introducing each of the girls as auntie: Jocelyn, Juliet, Joy, Jordan, Jillian, Jessica, and Joan to the little girl. When it came to the Arc parents he introduced them as nana Judy and papa Jo to the little girl. This was enough to make Judith start tearing up from the joy of hearing her appointed title to the little girl in Fenix's arms.

Fenix then made the rounds introducing little Flayr to all of his friends who had grouped up while he was introducing his little girl to the Arcs. He reluctantly left Neo at the hands of momma Arc who felt she had to interrogate the girl who seemed very attached to Fenix. He tried to reason that Neo didn't need to be questioned but he was waved off by the little mute who insisted he go introduce his daughter to everyone. The introductions went how he expected it to go. Nora and Ruby tried to steal Flayr from his arms but she just held onto him tightly to show she didn't want to go to them. They looked a little hurt but Fenix laughed it off telling them they had the whole weekend to get her to warm up to them. Yang, Alexis, and Pyrrha all started acting motherly towards the little girl which earned them a few giggles and smiles from her. Ren just nodded and patted the little girl's head. He then moved on to Liam, Blake, and Beau who had grouped up since their parents were all talking to Blake's dad. Beau was first as he just complimented how she was a little cutie. When it came to introduce Flayr to Blake, he got quite the surprise.

"Kitty!" Little Flayr squealed as she actually reached for Blake to hold her. Blake just stared at the little girl wide eyed before looking to Fenix for what she should do. Fenix was confused how Flayr knew about Blake's faunus traits. Then it clicked in his head as he looked up to see sure enough the bow was gone and her cat ears were out in the open. He decided to hold off on commenting on them for the time being.

"Well this is rare. Flayr usually doesn't like new people but she seems to like you." He smiled as he handed the little girl over to Blake who awkwardly held the toddler. Flayr immediately started trying to climb up Blake to get to her faunus ears. Blake initially tried to fend the little girl off but after a few unsuccessful attempts she stopped and started tearing up.

"Oh no please don't do that." Blake said trying to calm the little girl down. It was no use, she started sobbing and teetered on the edge of crying. A sudden gust of wind and rose petals signaled that Ruby had arrived on the scene.

"No no Flayr! You gotta do it like this! See?" Flayr stopped her crying only to see Ruby turning her puppy dog pout on. After a few seconds Flayr attempted to copy Ruby's facial expressions and soon she was closely resembling Ruby's patented puppy dog pout. Once Flayr had it close enough Ruby turned towards Blake and soon the little girl followed suite.

"That's just not fair." Blake mumbled.

"RUBY DON'T TEACH HER THAT!" Fenix yelled as he discovered what auntie Ruby was teaching his baby girl. Something he personally considered one of the most deadly weapons she could wield against him at this age.

"Fine." Blake finally caved as she raise little Flayr up so she could have access to her cat ears. The little girl squealed in delight as she started roughly petting Blake between the ears. With each pet, Blake's impassive face winced when Flayr's tiny hand brushed up against her ears just a tad to rough for her tastes. Fenix gave her an 'I'm sorry' look to which Blake just shrugged it off and continued to let the little girl pet her.

"Why did you have to do that little sis?" Fenix said exasperatedly as he then turned to face the little reaper.

"Because every girl should know how to have her dad wrapped around her finger." Ruby stated proudly.

"She already does! You just gave her another weapon for her already stacked arsenal!" He whined in reply.

"Good." Ruby said as she skipped away completely satisfied with her work. Completely neglecting the fact that Flayr had been allowed to touch Blake's faunus ears when she had been denied. At that moment Fenix decided Flayr had harassed Blake enough for today and he grabbed ahold of her. Surprisingly she went with no fuss. She giggled at her daddy as if to say 'haha I got what I wanted' to which Fenix could only smile. He wasn't lying when he said she had him wrapped around her finger. Then all of the sudden she stopped giggling and started jumping in his arms excitedly.

"TEDDY!" She exclaimed loudly as she continued jumping and pointed at Liam. To Fenix's complete and utter surprise Liam walked over, plucked the little girl from his hands, and put her on his shoulders to give her a piggyback ride.

"Well that was… unexpected." Fenix said quietly to himself. He then noticed an elder faunus woman watching the spectacle of Liam walking around with a happily laughing Flayr on his shoulders. Fenix then remembered a description Liam had given of his family before and she noticed this woman perfectly fit the mold of Liam's mother. He then walked over to introduce himself.

"Mrs. Randgrid?" He asked as she turned her head in response.

"Yes?" She asked in kind.

"Fenix Fall. I'm Liam's partner." He offered his hand to which she smiled and brushed it to the side to give the slightly surprised fire wielder a hug. He needed to remember to thank Coco for suggesting he drop the hand kissing greeting. Since he had stopped doing that he was getting a lot less awkward looks from people.

"Its so nice to meet you Fenix. Are you keeping my baby in line? I know he can come across as a bit difficult at times. And do call me Kari dear. Mrs. Randgrid makes me feel too old." Kari chuckled as she released Fenix from the hug.

"Ok Mrs. Kari. And nah he is pretty easy to get along with once you get to know him. But I've got to ask, is he always like this? The only time we've seen him smile is after a good fight in our combat class." Fenix asked with genuine interest. It was true the members of their team had tried to get Liam to act a little more cheerful but all of their efforts had just seemed to annoy the bear faunus.

"Oh yes he has always had a soft spot for children. In our village he was a popular one amongst the little ones who liked to play war and rough house. But you could also talk him into playing dolls or having a tea party with the little girls." She smiled warmly reminiscing all the times she had found her son being held captive by the younger children wanting his attention.

"So he is a big softy?" Fenix chuckled as Kari nodded matching the boy's silent laughter.

"Yes but I wouldn't exactly let everybody know it. He tends to get a bit rough when people start teasing him." Kari rushed the words out as if she realized she had just made a grave mistake. She did recall how many times she had been called by the school to meet about Liam beating up the other kids in his class for making fun of him.

"So a big sensitive softy? That's alright we won't give him too much grief over it. And don't worry about me ma'am. I can take him." He finished with a wink. Liam's mother didn't seem to believe him from the look she was giving him.

"You must be hiding a lot of strength in that lean frame of yours then Fenix." She stated skeptically as she finished giving him a once over.

"It isn't always about strength ma'am. Sometimes its more about finesse." He said as he flicked his semblance to show her his burning eyes for a brief moment.

"I see." Was all she could say as she stared awestruck at the boy's ability. Just then Fenix jumped as a single petite finger poked him in his side. He turned to find that Neo was standing there smirking at the reaction she got out of him.

'A little ticklish are we?' She signed instead of using her scroll to type out their conversation. Fenix may or may not have warned her of Jessica's habits of hacking all nearby electronic devices. Neo's use of sign language caught the attention of some of the members of the group.

'Only because you know how to use your hands so well.' Fenix quipped back with a flirtatious wink. Neo in turn grinned and waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

*cough cough* "If you two could not flirt in front of the rest of us that would be marvelous." Whitney Schnee said with the slightest hint of irritation to her voice.

"Mrs. Schnee my apologies. It is good to see you again ma'am." Fenix bowed respectfully to her to which she smiled at. He was slightly surprised that Mrs. Schnee could read sign language. The more he thought about it the more he reazlized he really shouldn't have been all that shocked.

"You as well young Mr. Fall. Winter will be most disappointed to know she missed seeing you here." Before Fenix could retort to the smug lady Schnee she turned and strolled away to find her sulking husband. Neo and Fenix just turned to each other before shrugging simultaneously. Fenix then turned to address the entire group. As he did Neo latched onto her favorite spot on his arm and leaned into him. He smiled before continuing on with his announcement.

"Well now, I apologize for holding everybody up but now that we all are here we can continue on. Unless you'd rather spend your evening conversing at the docks." He spoke loudly to get everybody's attention. He was met with a lot of smiles and giggles at his last comment as he motioned with his free hand to the gates behind him. In the background Beacon tower stood tall and proud seeming to call for the group to move towards it. The group then started to move towards the academy so they could officially begin their weekend at Beacon.

To Fenix's surprise, Liam kept Flayr on his shoulders as they walked down the long main entrance of Beacon. Fenix offered to relieve the bear faunus of babysitting duty but Liam just waved him off quietly mumbling that he didn't mind. Neo stayed latched onto Fenix as she could practically feel the heated glares being shot her way from three of the Arc sisters, Yang, and Mrs. Schnee. This negative attention just fueled her impish nature, causing her to relish the feeling of being the source of their jealousy. It was somewhat astounding in a sense that no matter where she went she could always stir up trouble. But, she wouldn't be in her line of work if that weren't the case. That, along with her willingness to kill and make a quick buck, were the main reasons Roman decided to incorporate her into his business.

The sudden ringing of a scroll brought her out of her inner monologue. She quickly realized it was her scroll that was buzzing and recognized the ringtone. She groaned as she untangled one arm to fetch her scroll. Once she fished it out she unlocked it and brought it up to listen to whatever message her boss was going to give her. 'Speak or think of the devil and they shall appear' she exasperatedly thought to herself.

Fenix watched with mild amusement as his mute girlfriend seemed to huff a lot of air and roll her eyes as if she were annoyed with someone. He deduced it must have been the equivalent of a groan as she pulled her scroll out and then put it to her ear. He stifled his inner child who was giggling at the idea of a mute person talking on their scroll for fear of his life. Although he had to admit he found all of the little things she could only do because she was a mute to be adorable. It was what made her who she was and that was what seemed to make him fall more for her.

Soon she started pouting as she hung up her scroll and looked at him with sorrowful eyes. He had never seen this side of her before but he had an idea what it meant.

"Let me guess. Duty calls?" He asked slightly disappointed. She nodded in response. She then looked towards Flayr and signed to Fenix he wanted to say goodbye to her. Fenix understood and motioned to the large statue in the center of the courtyard that they had just passed. She nodded once again as she understood what he meant.

"Hey Liam!" He shouted and immediately regretted his decision as everybody turned to stare at him. He pushed aside the slight nervousness that crept up from being the center of attention in an awkward way.

"Could I have Flayr? Somebody here needs to go and she would like to say goodbye." He said motioning to Neo with his thumb.

"Already? I was hoping to tal- converse! Yeah have a conversation with you!" Alexis spoke awkwardly as she realized she had probably just insulted Neo. She figured saying things like talk and speak to a mute person would probably push a few buttons. To her surprise Neo smiled and seemed to shake her shoulders like she was laughing. She then signed to Fenix to which he turned to her.

"She says don't worry she won't get upset over stuff like that. And she will probably be back tomorrow." He finished as Liam approached and pulled Flayr off his shoulders to hand her to her daddy.

"Life of a Huntress must be a busy one huh?" He asked Neo to which she held her hand out and rocked it back and forth as if to say 'so-so'.

"Wait what? She's a Huntress?" Yang spoke up to which many of the other students seemed interested in the answer as well.

"Yeah graduated from Shade Academy two years ago." He said offhandedly to which Neo nodded in confirmation.

"Wow no offense but you don't look any older than Rubes over here. And she got in two years early." Yang spoke slightly shocked at the older girl's appearance. Neo was annoyed only in the sense that she was always assumed to be way younger than what she actually was. She figured most women would kill for something like that but for her it was just a nuisance. Her attention was then brought to the little reaper of the group who was now looking a bit shy from all the attention. Neo then pointed to her and raised and tilted her head as if to ask 'you?'.

"Y-yeah me." Ruby stuttered out. Neo then rolled her eyes and spun her hand to urge the girl to explain. Noticing how awkward the situation was making Ruby feel, Fenix stepped in.

"Apparently she stopped a dust robbery by a wanted criminal who goes by the name of Torchwick?" His voice raised at the name of the mention of Roman as he looked to Ruby to see if he got the name right. She nodded to assure him he got it right. Neo's eyes went wide as she finally had a face to put to the girl that her boss had lovingly dubbed "Red." By lovingly she totally meant that Roman wanted a chance to get back at the little girl for making him look like a fool in front of their employer. She then turned to Fenix and signed a quick question.

"She wants to know was that really you?" He asked Ruby as she shyly nodded again. Fenix saw the poor girl looking as awkward as she did the first day and decided he needed to try to cheer her up.

"Don't worry Ruby. Its impressive that the fully fledged Hunters have heard about what you did." He said shooting her a smile to which she seemed to brighten up to.

After making sure Ruby had recovered from her social anxiety, Fenix took Flayr and Neo and started leading them to go behind the large statue. He did this so Neo could teleport without being seen by the group of friends. He wasn't sure why but something told him that Neo would prefer to do that away from the prying eyes of his friends and their family. Didn't want one of them noticing how she did it and recognizing her as the famous Huntress she was.

As soon as they rounded the large statue and were out of eyesight of the group, Neo moved so she was facing Fenix and Flayr. She brought her face so it was directly in front of Flayr's and let a small part of her disguise fall. Flayr giggled and started reaching for Neo as she saw Neo's natural eye color. The little girl seeming to recognize that Neo's mismatched eye color was similar to her own. Neo was surprised that the toddler had picked up on that as she reached forward to take Flayr from Fenix.

Once Neo had ahold of her, Flayr reached for Neo's face. Neo allowed her to as Flayr tried to guide the pinkette/brunette's face towards her own. After a bit of awkward fumbling on both party's ends, Flayr had it so their foreheads were touching and their eyes were staring into the other's.

"She's pretty smart for her age." Fenix said as he looked at the spectacle warmly. It was a cute sight to see Flayr liking somebody so much. Especially since he compared his daughter's shyness to that of Ruby's. It really meant a lot to him that his daughter seemed to almost accept Neo as her daddy's girlfriend. Of course she didn't fully understand everything going on about this but it was obvious she liked her. That was what Fenix was hoping for.

Neo smiled at the little girl's display of affection before breaking if off to hand her back to her dad.

"So there's been something on my mind lately that I feel like I need to let you know." Fenix said awkwardly as he took Flayr back from Neo. Neo tilted her head slightly and looked at him with those pink and brown eyes. He felt himself melting under that cute stare. To avoid falling under her spell, he snapped his attention back to what he was wanting to say.

"Listen, I just want you to know that the reason I like you so much isn't just because you have the same genetic mutation as my daughter. I love you for you. Not because you remind me so much of her." He finished hoping he hadn't messed that up. One misstep on something like this could lead to a misunderstanding which would probably lead to her hating him. He wasn't sure he could handle that.

To his surprise he watched as Neo seemed to break apart and shatter before him. A moment of worry was quickly dealt with as he remembered that was part of her semblance. Well part of one of her semblances. When the figure before him shattered he was greeted with the Neo he knew. Ice cream colored hair, eyes, and clothes toting a parasol. Flayr squealed in joy at the sight and that caused Neo to smile more.

She then walked up to peck him on the cheek. She was surprised when he turned at the last second so the kiss on the cheek turned into a loving kiss on the lips. She didn't delve in too far for the sake of the toddler in his arms. Although she really wanted to after he was so sweet with his little confession. She backed away after a few seconds of kissing and tucked her parasol under her arm.

'That was sweet but you didn't need to tell me that. I know, besides…" Her sign language trailed off as she then pointed to herself.

'I' (she said wordlessly as she pointed to herself)

'Love' her hands made the shape of a heart in front of her face.

'You' she pointed to him.

'Too' she held up two fingers.

Fenix beamed a smile at the first time she had said this in return. Before he could say anything else she winked and in a blink she was gone. He had noticed this was a favorite exit strategy of hers and thus he had gotten used to it by now. His attention was then caught by Flayr whipping her head back and forth as she frantically searched for Neo.

"Yeah you don't need to be playing peek-a-boo or hide and seek with her. She will just distort your perception of how to play the game." Fenix laughed to himself. His daughter smiled at her daddy's laughter and bounced up and down in his arms.

"Well you ready? Now that Neo's gone we have to deal with the Arcs." He grimaced as he had an inkling how fast he was going to be swarmed by them once he rejoined the group. He loved them like they were his own family but sometimes having seven sisters could be overwhelming for any boy.

"Ohhh Feeeeniiiiiiix!" He heard the unmistakable voice of Joan calling his name. Giving a defeated sigh as he resigned himself to his fate, he started walking to rejoin the group with his daughter happily babbling her toddler jabber.

 **(A/N): Welcome Flayr! I hope you guys were satisfied with Fenix's big secret reveal. Don't worry we will have at least one more (probably two) chapter(s) of this family weekend episode. We will be seeing a lot more interactions and Flayr isn't going anywhere anytime soon.**

 **I know I may have stepped on some toes here straying from the cannon and having almost all the parents here. I personally liked my idea of having Li and An (Ren's parents) here and alive. Ghira and Kali (Blake's parents) showing up pushed up Blake's faunus reveal but I wanted to include them all in the story.**

 **As for Tai, there will be a chapter completely dedicated to Fenix meeting with the two male members of team STRQ at some point. That will be an emotional roller coaster for our young fire wielder but I'm sure a lot of people would like to read.**

 **As always if you liked this story/chapter please review, follow, and favorite! Hope you guys enjoyed the read and I'll see you again soon!**


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